Kurayami
by Light Derived from Darkness
Summary: The continuing adventures of the Chan family and a foreign exchange student with an ambiguous gift. [Ch. 31 - A cursed night is upon the Chans and Sef in China, dark tales are told and the Enforcers stumble upon Uncle's unguarded shop.]
1. The Highly Expected Arrival

The Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Jackie Chan Adventures or anything in association to it. Yet another thing I hope to possess once the entire world is brought to its knees before me...lightning strikes behind my hardly threatening figure

Jade continued to pace across the front of the shop, consistently kicking any objects that got in her stubborn way and looking up and out of the front window countless times in a single moment. She growled at unexpected times, tracing her fingers daftly over the elaborate patterns recently carved into the front wall of the shop, trying to find something else that could preoccupy here than dull and suspenseful waiting. After nearly ten minutes of this passive and aggravated silence, she finally spoke coherently to the figures moving into the room.

"When are they going to get here Jackie? I'm sure Uncle probably got lost trying to find the airport," she complained in a childish whine as Jackie and Tohru entered the room carrying various crates Uncle had ordered them to move out of storage. Jackie sighed and became a bit more angered with her questioning, having been asked this same question at least twenty times in the last half an hour. Needless to say, he was tired repeating the same reply over and over again.

"You know as well as I do that they're not supposed to arrive back for another half an hour," Jackie muttered as he had said countless times before, setting down the back-breaking boxes onto the unhindered desk chair and wiping a few layers of sweat from his forehead. They had been at this for a couple of hours and he was beginning to tire of the grueling task. He attempted to put Jade to work helping them, but she was too distracted looking for Uncle and their expected guest to arrive to bother keeping her busy. He hadn't forced her to, knowing she would only resort once again to mischief in order to slack off.

"Yeah, but knowing Uncle he'll either come back really early or really late, and I'm gonna be ready just in case it's really early," she said hastily in response to the systematic answer, watching unblinkingly out of the window as though they were going to appear out of thin air. Jackie sighed and gave up one again.

Jade tried to look outside the window, but much of her view was diverted by the countless artifacts displayed in on the windowsill. Small replicas of famous shrines and temples blocked her gaze, small figurines and dusty books cluttered and piled up and gathering at a few ages worth of grime. Even the window itself barely revealed any of the outside world through the dirt that had gathered there over the years. It was so thick by this time that she could still see the small scribbles that had drawn into it from a few week before, having succumbed to a similar boredom. She sneezed and instead moved towards the door, drawing up the tangled blinds so she could look out that. When nothing appeared she gave in to watching and instead walked over to the desk chair, shoving the boxes aside hastily and placing herself onto the lumpy cushion, leaning her head lazily onto her open hands and resting her elbows onto her knees.

'I'll probably be waiting here _forever_ knowing Uncle...'  
  
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"Let me take a look."

Finn knocked Chow away with a swift but weak jab to his stomach, pushing him aside as he continued to survey the crowd below through the binoculars.

"Valmont said he wanted me to look, so that means you and Ratso should be down there doing some ground surveillance," Finn replied, still continuing to scan through the masses traveling below the overhanging balcony. Chow rubbed where he had been hit and growled lightly but did not argue, instead motioning to Ratso to do as Finn had said, and the two of them got onto the escalator and waited to reach the bottom.

Finn smirked to himself, reaching up to adjust the collar of his shirt. 'This almost seems too easy. All we have to do is get to that kid before Chan's uncle does and take him back to Valmont. I wonder what he wants with some kid anyways, but hey, what do I care?' he thought to himself as he continued to watch, directing his gaze towards an airplane hanger that was emptying out into the main hall, the one that Valmont had indicated would be the one from which the boy would emerge. He looked throughout the crowd for the one they were looking for.

A couple, a businessman, a bunch of tourists from somewhere in Europe, and a huddled group of nuns flooded out into the already overpopulated area, but Finn continued to look through them, getting bored of this duty. He could see Chow and Ratso heading towards the same group as well, shoving anyone who got in their way aside as they made their way there.

Suddenly Finn spotted a small figure weaving throughout the crowd, a mass of long black hair and a flash of gold accompanying the diminutive person. He reached down and picked up the walkie-talkie that was placed next to him and switched it on, speaking into it with a cunning grin suddenly on his face.

"I've spotted the target. Move in and make sure not to draw attention to yourselves. And make sure Chan's annoying uncle doesn't see."  
  
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Sef stepped out of the hanger and looked around, wishing that they had included some sort of photograph of his host family here in America so he would be able to spot them in the crowded airport. He found he couldn't stand still for long however with the massive crowd filing out behind him, and he eventually came to rest in an undisturbed pocket of space in the eye of the masses.

Reaching into his vest pocket, he produced the only clue he possessed to finding whomever he needed to. It listed the members of the host family he had been assigned to and a few tidbits of information about their activities, occupations, etc. According to the information it provided, his primary guardian was named Jackie Chan and was an archeologist here. At least it gave them something in common; Sef's own father was a well-known archeologist in Egypt.

He was already missing his home, but he knew that was to be expected considering he had never even left the city of Cairo before this day, instead spending every day after he reached the age of four aiding his father in excavations and archeological digs. It was a fascinating and rewarding career, one that Sef hoped he would be able to follow in from his father's influence, and perhaps even the guidance of his host father. It seemed a bit strange to him he had ended up in a Chinese family when he was coming into America, but it would provide him with some learning on two different cultures at once.

He wandered a few more steps before he paused again, looking around for someone that could be looking for him at the same moment. It said Jackie was a younger guy, only around thirty or so, but no one came forward and Sef decided to wait. Maybe he had been held up and hadn't made it here yet. He sighed, hoping that he wouldn't be overlooked.

After all, when you're in between three and four feet tall, you seem to always get overlooked.  
  
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Finn saw that his comrades had become lost in the crowd, making minimal progress towards the small child looking around curiously.

"Of course those idiots manage to mess up a really simple mission..." Finn mumbled to himself, shoving the small walkie-talkie into his pocket and deciding to go down there himself and lend them a hand. The sooner they had the kid in their grasp, the sooner they could get out of this stuffy place.

He pushed his way down the staircase, reaching his friends in a moment or so of struggling through the masses. The kid, Sef, was standing only a few feet away, looking at a small index card clutched in his hand, peering up from it every once in a while as though looking for something. He grasped the shirt collars of both his teammates, tugged them back and hissed into their ears, trying to keep quiet so no one else heard.

"What are you two just standing here for? Get the kid so we can get the heck out of this place!" he whispered angrily, but Chow interrupted him before he could continue with his lecture.

"We can't just run up there and grab him. If we do that we'll bring attention to ourselves and Chan's uncle will probably hex us or something. There's little doubt that kid'll make a scene if we try to take him away forcefully. We have to find some way to do this discreetly," he argued back, and Finn seemed distraught by his legitimate excuse. He hadn't actually considered this very thoroughly, though the kid was so scrawny that brute force and threats would probably be enough to keep him quiet. Still, one whimper to a burly security officer and this entire mission could backfire completely.

"All right listen, we have to do this quick. See that empty part of the corridor over there?" Finn indicated a small area that was abandoned by people in between two of the plaster columns reaching up to the ceiling, "All we have to do is grab the little brat and get him over there. If there aren't any people around and we manage to avoid everyone we can, we'll be able to get him out of here without incident."

The other two nodded in agreement and they went into a triangular formation around Sef, each one getting ready to attempt to restrain him. Finn went first, preparing under the cover of an immobile group of lost tourists, watching as Sef continued to remain unaware of them, absent- mindedly dropping the small index card he was holding and watching it flutter to the floor.

Finn took his chance and leapt at him...and completely missed. He lunged right over him as Sef bent down to retrieve the index card, toppling over the cement floor and coming to rest a few feet away, moaning weakly in agony as bruises formed all over him. People stared at the strange sight but did not stop to try and help him. It seemed to show just how much of a hurry they were in.

Chow watched with a slight smile as his comrade failed yet again to succeed in something he himself had called 'simple.' Chow stepped to the side behind a stream of people and watched as Sef stood straight again and drifted a bit to his right, facing the opposite direction. Chow pushed through the line of people swiftly, extending one hand out prepared to snatch the boy, when suddenly Sef stepped the side again, diverted by a shout that wasn't directed towards him, and Chow failed to grab him. He retaliated by turning to face him again, but before he could even try another stream of people completely shoved him away, and he was unable to change direction with the thick crowd pushing him along.

Ratso observed as his two comrades had been unsuccessful and instead decided to take a direct approach, just making sure that Sef didn't catch sight of the towering figure drawing near but not attempting to do it quick as his fellow Enforcers had. He didn't need bother shoving his way through the crowds; people willingly got out of his way because of his size and frightening appearance, so thus he had no trouble making his way towards the ignorant boy, who was looking all around without the knowledge that he was in any danger. Ratso smiled slyly; this was the first time he would have ever outdone the other two in a mission, usually failing right alongside them and taking the blame for all their mistakes. He reached out with both his hands, hoping to simply crush the boy's windpipe so he couldn't shout for help and get him out of sight quickly so no one took notice. He was mere inches away, and Sef still did not know he was there. He almost had him...

Suddenly Ratso felt a strange sensation pass through him, a paralyzing cold forcing him to stay in place, frozen in the position he had been in, mere inches from Sef. Try as he might, he couldn't move. It felt as though he was rooted into the ground, the fibers restraining him extending through his entire body as he grunted and clenched his teeth, trying with all his might to break free of the strange hold over him. It was then he suddenly listened and heard a strange voice over all the other, casual conversations that were taking place in the airport. Chanting, unbroken and consistent, and coming closer. He recognized it right away, and his suspicions were confirmed when suddenly Uncle emerged from the crowd before Sef and Ratso, stopping as he halted before the boy.  
  
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"Are you my host parent?" Sef asked curiously, continuing to look at the index card and then back up at the figure before him.

"I am Jackie's Uncle. I have come to pick you up for him," he informed him hastily, suddenly reaching forward and grabbing his wrist with a surprisingly strong grip for his seemingly frail age. Before Sef could protest or question, he was being pulled through the masses of people.

"Uh, are we in a hurry for something?" Sef asked weakly as he found himself being literally dragged across the floor, Uncle seeming somewhat distraught over something.

"It is nothing. I merely want to get back to the shop before my nephew and apprentice break something valuable as they always do," he said seriously with a trace of dry humor, though Sef sensed it was something else that was bothering him. He did not bother questioning as he attempted to keep in step with Uncle, unable to half the time. He was also unbelievably fast for his apparent age.

Uncle glanced at Sef continuously, observing the obvious signs of his ethnicity, his long black and unkept hair, the articles of jewelry he wore all about him, the glassy sapphire eyes that shone with innocent youth and mischief, much like Jade's own eyes. But his eyes soon fell to the simple and dimly ornate amulet the boy wore around his neck, tossing about as he attempted to get him out of danger's way before the Enforcers attempted to kidnap him yet again under his nose.

He was just grateful he had managed to reach the boy before any of those bumbling idiots had managed to get to him. Ratso had been so close to seizing him it made Uncle shiver a bit, but he quickly repressed any fears that made themselves present. The boy hadn't even realized how close he had been to being captured, still blissfully blind to the situation he had just been in. Uncle was also thankful for that; he hoped that Sef would remain in the dark of any of these matters until the time came when there was no other choice but to tell him.

They were approaching the exit now, having integrated into tight crowd of people as he had hoped to keep themselves protected, when suddenly he noticed a figure standing aside from the people progressing out of the airport, watching them intently. Uncle glared back at Valmont, as though challenging him to try and take Sef away even with so many attentive eyes, but he did nothing as they passed but observed with a hateful, unblinking stare. This encounter proved to unnerve him yet again, but he shook it away swiftly as he had before, in that brief moment he had seen Ratso appear behind Sef, prepared to do whatever necessary to keep the child silent during the abduction.

"So...if you're Mr. Chan's uncle then what do you want me to call you?" Sef asked quietly as they departed and headed towards the countless parking garages where Uncle's rental car was waiting. Uncle merely smiled faintly, hoping to keep a calm front that would not lead to Sef's suspicion.

"You can just call me Uncle. Now let's get home before Jackie manages to burn down the shop," Uncle said hastily, leading them towards the nearest garage without looking back.


	2. Welcomes and Wrath

Jade nearly leapt out of her skin with utter excitement as Uncle's dingy old rental car finally pulled in front of the shop, Uncle's voice heard from within the car cursing the dying automobile in Chinese as Sef discreetly plugged the ear aimed in Uncle's direction. She stood at the door, waiting for them to enter and preparing to pounce on their new houseguest the second he got out of the car.

She had remembered she had been skeptical at first about having an exchange student come to stay with them considering how crowded the shop and their home above it already were, but when Jackie had told her the boy that was arriving was around her age, her entire outlook on the situation had changed. Considering she got picked on routinely at school with her seemingly made up stories about ninjas and demons and so forth, it would be fun to have someone in the house who had no choice but to honor her request at telling the endless tales. As a guest in their household, she would be sure to manipulate his debt to them.

Uncle got out of the driver's seat and kicked the side of the car, muttering that it was a useless piece of junk and various other things in Chinese that Jade did not wanted translated. Sef looked like he'd been through the underworld and back the way he was grasping the seat for dear life with one hand and still plugging an ear with the other; Uncle wasn't exactly the most careful driver in the world and still didn't seem to understand what stoplights were meant for. Sef was probably lucky to still be alive at this point.

Sef finally unbuckled his seat belt and wrenched himself from the ancient vehicle, stepping out before the shop and gazing at it with a mystified expression. Jade thrust open the door and stepped aside as Uncle stormed in, still complaining about the lousy transmission as he had been for the past few days. Jade continued to observe Sef, who seemed spellbound and terrified of everything around him, looking all down the streets as people filed down the sidewalk and nearly trampled him.

"You gonna stay outside and wait to get mugged?" she said blankly and suddenly with a slight smile, and Sef jumped back, startled by her sudden attentions towards him. He seemed so nervous, but that was to be expected considering he had just arrived to an entirely new place. She remembered back to when she had first arrived to the strange and populated New York City, and she pushed aside some of her earlier desires to make his life miserable since she could relate to how he felt. She sighed and awaited him to answer her, crossing her arms and unafraid to show the boredom settling in over her expression.

"Uh, yes," Sef said hastily, getting off of the sidewalk and entering into the shop, looking all around him in renewed wonder at all the artifacts and treasures surrounding him. They had lost their luster to Jade a long time ago and she didn't understand what he saw in them. He carefully walked up to a life-sized statue of a legendary samurai, tracing his fingers down the dulled sword that the stone warrior held tightly in his hands. Jade personally thought the statue was a little creepy, always coming downstairs in the middle of the night and thinking it was a Shadowkhan waiting in the dark for her.

"You're acting like this is a museum or something. Aren't you going to properly introduce yourself or something?" Jade inquired, her eyes drooping a bit with coming weariness, and Sef once again seemed surprised by her voice, taking an involuntary back step away as though an enemy were advancing on him. 'Man, is he paranoid.'

"Why are you so afraid of me? It's not like I have foot-long fangs coming out of my mouth and green oozing skin for crying out loud. My name is Jade by the way," she said, extending a friendly hand to the shaken individual, who accepted the gesture immediately with a weak smile. His grip was a bit stronger than Jade would have imagined from a skinny kid like him.

"My name is Sef, though you probably already know that..." he replied simply, shaking her hand profusely to the point where Jade thought her arm was in danger of coming off. It seemed all he needed was to be shown that he was welcome here to loosen up a bit, though she could feel him shaking slightly under his grasp.

"You got a last name attached to that somewhere?" Jade asked curiously, mainly for the purposes of introducing him when they went to school tomorrow. She was already considering how nervous he was going to be entering a new school without a single friend to confide with, but at least she could guide him around and make sure he wasn't pushed around, being the new guy and all.

"Well, my full name is Sef Un-Nefer Artaxerxes," Sef replied with a wide smile, and Jade just stared with her mouth hanging wide open. So much for remembering a name like that.

"Sef-un-fer-xer-what?" she asked with an awkward expression, and Sef actually laughed a bit, shaking his head as though he had gotten this same reaction many times before. With a name like that, she wasn't surprised he had.

"My father is a bit eccentric I guess, but you can just call me Sef. There isn't any need for formalities or anything, especially considering I can barely pronounce my own last name," Sef said casually, a relaxed grin on his face and another quiet laugh as he seemed humored by her reaction. She straightened her face again but allowed herself a faint smile as well.

"C'mon, I'll show you where you're staying and then we can come back down here and get ready for dinner. Uncle's making Long Soup tonight in honor of your coming here," she said with a suddenly cheerful demeanor, gripping his wrist and leading him to the iron-cast spiral staircase in the corner of the shop. Sef cringed; his wrist was still throbbing from earlier when Uncle had been dragging him out of the airport.

"What's 'Long Soup?'" Sef asked with a curious gaze, beginning to smell faint traces of it from the unseen kitchen.

"Just a combination of different meats and vegetables, some chicken and shallots and cabbage and pork all mixed together. Trust me, you'll like it," she turned after she had halted for a moment and bent in to whisper into his ear, "And just between you and me, it's probably the only decent meal he cooks around here. Usually we toss whatever he prepares while he isn't looking and replace it with take-out, and he never even knows the difference."

Sef laughed at this, covering his mouth to minimize the noise they made. Jade giggled for a second as well and then continued to pulled him up the staircase and into a lonely corridor, yanking him into a bedroom to the immediate right, the lights already on and the door open for them.

Jackie was in the room making up the second bed in there, and as he did so he merely turned and smiled at them as they entered, planning to introduce himself once he was done. Sef observed his new bedroom, plain and dull compared to the cluttered shop below, but it still carried a warm and welcoming feeling within it.

"You're gonna be bunking with me while you're here. We'd give you a room of your own, but we don't have a lot of room to spare," Jade explained, plopping down onto her own messy bed and seizing up a small moose doll that was once propped up on the pillows. She held it close and became fascinated with twirling its small cape in her fingers, acting bored once again. The excitement of Sef's arrival seemed to be passing.

"Oh, it's no trouble at all. I don't want to be a burden upon anyone," Sef replied meekly, turning as Jackie finished wrapping the sheets around the mattress, throwing the two layers of blankets upon the bed for him to use and turning to finally get acquainted with their new guest.

"My name is Jackie Chan. It's a pleasure to meet you Sef," he said in a friendly tone, and Sef immediately took his hand as he had when Jade had introduced herself.

"Well it seems you already know me, but then they do always forward information on an arriving foreign exchange beforehand I suppose," Sef said, and Jackie nodded in confirmation, happy to see that Sef's feelings of awkwardness had passed and he was beginning to feel welcomed into their home.

"I read that your father is an archeologist over in Egypt, a very respected one in fact. I've heard of him before from some of my colleagues," Jackie started, and Sef nodded, beginning to toy with the amulet strung around his neck.

"Yeah, I read that you were an archeologist here, so it'll be just like I never left home," Sef replied, and Jackie nodded this time.

"It seems we will have much to talk about then," Jackie said, glad to see someone of his age that seemed to enjoy archeology, but Jade interrupted before their conversation progressed any further.

"Yeah yeah yeah, it'll make for great conversations over dinner. I want to talk to Sef before we have to head down to eat supper Jackie," she whined as she placed her doll aside and cast her legs over the edge of the bed, kicking them into the air impatiently. Jackie decided to leave them alone even with her rather immature request. At least Jade was showing interest in becoming the boy's friend, something that Jackie had, for a short time, had feared would not happen. He exited the room and walked down the stairs to go and helped Tohru lock up the storage compartment in the back.

"So Sef," Jade started once Jackie had departed from the room, watching as Sef walked across the faded and stained carpet and plopping upon his own bed, which he found was very comfortable.

"How was the trip getting here?"  
  
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"You are completely useless idiots!" Valmont's enraged voice rang through the chamber, reverberating off the hallowed walls as the three minions cowered to it. The echoes eerily cast off the walls as Finn attempted to explain their failure, though he noted the dark undertones that Shendu added in to give it a far more terrifying affect.

"Chan's uncle got involved before we could get to him, and besides, that airport was packed! It was more than likely we would have been spotted kidnapping the kid, so it was probably doomed from the beginning," Finn explained weakly, and he was immediately met with a savage response as Valmont continued to spew hatred down at them.

"I do not care if Chan's uncle was there! You could have simply tricked the child into think you were his host family, or claimed you were sent to pick him up if you didn't think he'd believe you!" he spat, and the three of them all hung their heads, feeling stupid for having not thought that up themselves.

"It didn't occur to us, but we can still snag the kid sometime during the day, maybe on his way to school or back sometime," Finn replied, but Valmont's temper ceased to calm even with his promise that they would not fail again.

"You had better capture the boy soon. The time is drawing near and I will not stand to have this opportunity pass us as so many others have, especially not to your foolish clumsiness!" he shouted, and the three of them shuddered with fear, observing the red glint appearing in Valmont's eyes as the demon within him reacted to his unsuppressed anger.

"We...we promise not to fail again," Chow said weakly, his voice shaking as Shendu took over Valmont's body once more, towering over them with clenched fists and bared teeth.

"I have heard that claim before, but I suppose now that we are able to obtain the child in more discreet locations that Hak Foo will now be able to aid in his capture, since it is becoming increasingly obvious that you three are incapable of restraining a small boy. It is just too bad that airport was so crowded, or else I would have sent him to take care of this, but he would stand out too much in a crowd so I had to rely on your pathetic abilities," he said in a venomous hiss, and suddenly from the shadows emerged the tall and threatening warrior, Hak Foo, pressing a fist against his other hand as though preparing to go into battle as he always seem. Valmont, however, smiled at this enthusiasm.

"I'm afraid brute force isn't going to be necessary in this case Hak Foo. You could tear through the little whelp like tissue paper, and that would ruin everything. I merely need you and these fools to await the boy to walk home from school tomorrow and snatch him away before Chan becomes involved. I'll be watching as well to step in if necessary, considering the mistakes made earlier this day, but I doubt with your leadership that it will be necessary," he said, glancing for a mere moment at the other Enforcers, who continued to hang their heads in shame and shudder in fear.

"Yes master. It would be disgraceful to use my power on such a frail and weak child, not to mention an unjustified waste," Hak Foo responded, though sounding disgruntled that his physical strength wasn't needed. Valmont turned to a device sitting upon a small pedestal only a few yards from where he stood, approaching it with a defiant stride.

"The newest tracking device available, courtesy of Section 13, and thanks to Hak Foo's efforts of course. It should help to watch every move that little Sef makes," he said, walking up alongside it and pressing a button upon it, a hologram instantly appearing over it, faltering and cast in static but still forming several shapes.

Sef could be seen sitting on the edge of a bed talking to Jade Chan, laughing every now and then and sometimes playing absent-mindedly with his amulet without a care. He seemed to be adjusting well to his new home. Valmont was pleased with this; it would lower the boy's defenses if he felt more comfortable in this new environment.

Shendu's voice spoke within Valmont's mind once more, who cringed and hated how the demon always made himself present. It was like a large void forming within him and consuming him, but he had gotten used to the sensation in the past.

"The child is completely unaware of all this. It would work to our advantage if he comes willing..."

"What do you mean by that?" Valmont asked back within the realm of his mind, continuing to watch as Chan entered the room and guided Sef and Jade out, probably telling them dinner was ready. Sef followed along last, halting and looking around with an expression that revealed something was troubling him. Perhaps he knew he was being watched, but he never looked up and noticed the small, disguised camera capturing his every move.

"It could be possible that the child will be able to resist what we wish to do, but if you can somehow convince him that this is the path to take, there will be no risk of disruptions and mistakes, and it will come far more easily..."

"First we have to worry about possessing him, let alone convincing him that we're his friends considering we've been planning his capture for over a month now," Valmont replied, but the demon spoke no more, instead fading back into the depths of his mind. Valmont sighed and closed his eyes momentarily to consider the suggestions made by the demon, opening them to see Jade and Sef now descending the spiral staircase back down into the shop.

He smiled suddenly in a dark manner and reached up, tracing his finger against the flickering hologram and down Sef's image, causing it to disrupt and temporarily die as the interference caused only more static to come.

'Who would have thought a mere child would hold precise what we need desperately...'


	3. Chi of Me

Sef burped and covered his mouth immediately afterwards. "It is true that the Chinese believe that burping is a sign of fulfillment from a meal?" he asked, embarrassed and blushing until he was completely crimson.

Jade giggled and dropped her chopsticks during her laughing spell. "No, but you can get away with it this time," she replied, still laughing at him as Jackie smiled as well. All except Uncle were amused, who was watching over the table like a hawk spying for prey.

"Are you enjoying your Long Soup Sef?" Uncle asked out of nowhere, watching as Sef blew on a steaming spoonful of the concoction. He smiled and nodded, gulping it down hungrily after doing so.

"I think it is very good, thank you for making it for me," he replied, and Uncle seemed satisfied he wasn't lying or pretending.

"I wish Jade had more appreciation towards Uncle's cooking, but she spits it out like she has eaten poison!" Uncle exclaimed at the same moment that Jade flung a few strands of soggy cabbage into Sef's face, who laughed, peeled them off, and tossed them back.

"Oh Sef, you never got introduce to Tohru yet have you?" Jackie said as a new figure entered into the room. Sef looked up at the massive giant that walked into the room, who was washing his hands down with a cloth. He didn't bother to hide his fear as his mouth hung wide open for a moment.

"This is Tohru. He helps around the shop and is Uncle's apprentice of..." Jackie suddenly cut off, and everyone in the room tensed up as Sef slid off his seat to shake Tohru's enormous hand.

"Apprentice of what?" Sef asked curiously, confused by the sudden silence that had fallen over the once loud and bustling room.

"Uh...he's Uncle's apprentice to..." Jade attempted to explain, searching all around the room for something that could aid her, !" she thought randomly, catching sight of the hanging cauldron over the fire in the kitchen, just barely in view.

"Oh, well that's neat. I wish I could cook. Maybe you can teach me how to Tohru," Sef said, looking back up to the towering goliath hovering overhead and still extending his arm, needing to hold it straight up into the air over his head in order to get it near Tohru's own hand.

"Uh, all right. It is nice to meet you as well Sef," Tohru said, still frowning as he attempted to be gentle with Sef's small hand, but he wasn't able to keep it loose enough, for the next moment Sef had his teeth clenched and was forcing a smile onto his face as he hid his pain. Tohru got the point and let go, walking over to the other side of the table and taking a seat onto the floor next to the table.

"Here Tohru, let me get you some of Uncle's Long Soup," Jackie offered, and Tohru merely nodded as Jackie stood from the table and went into the kitchen to pour him a bowl. Sef continued to eat his slowly, eventually coming to the point where he merely picked up the bowl and drank from it. He licked his lips and finished just as Jackie brought in Tohru's enormous serving of soup.

Jade finished her own quickly as soon as she realized that Sef was done with his own. "Uncle, can we be excused from the table?" she asked hastily, indicating her and Sef while smiling innocently.

"Well, at least you had manners to ask this time," Uncle said, still quietly eating his own fill, "You may be excused."

Jade immediately seized Sef by the collar of his shirt, wrenching him from the table and taking him out into the shop, heading towards an enormous bookshelf crammed from top to bottom with many thick volumes of unseen tales. Sef stared in awe as Jade rushed over to the corner of the room and produced a small step ladder, standing next to it after she had wheeled it over.

"Here, you get up here and I'll get up onto your shoulders since you're a tiny bit taller than me. There's a book up there I've never been able to get and you're the key to finally getting my hands on it," Jade demanded, and Sef stepped up onto the ladder, unsure of her request.

"Uh, are you sure this is all right? It seems a lot like stealing to me..." Sef murmured, but Jade merely shrugged.

"Uncle owns all this stuff anyways, so it's like I own it too," she said with a mischievous smile, climbing up atop Sef's shoulders, whose knees buckled as he tried to hold her up.

"Why do you want that book so badly?" he asked as sweat poured for his tanned face, looking up to see Jade scanning across the top shelf, looking for the right book. Finally she grinned wider and pulled from the clutter an incredibly thick book she needed to grasp with two hands to keep from dropping it. Sef felt a large increase in the weight he was holding up, and he bent down, his teeth clenched so hard together that he thought he was jaw was going to pop out soon.

"Please...get...down..." he begged with a few forced gasps, and Jade immediately leapt down from his shoulders, still grasping the heavy book and toppling over as she made contact from the weight of it. The book burst open, a few pages flickering across it in the wind flowing steady in the open window, and the lights in the house dimmed and then lit again.

"Uhh...I think we should put it back..." Sef muttered, but Jade merely shrugged again and opened the book further, searching for the Table of Contents to it.

"Probably just a coincidence. The lights have gotten really faulty in this place," Jade said, but Sef wasn't convinced.

"I dunno, I sense evil here..." Sef said seriously, but Jade mistook it as being a joke he was playing on her. She looked through the book but found no index or anything to shown the contents within it, and she sighed.

"This isn't what I was expecting. How's a girl supposed to get the perfect spell for transforming a certain school bully into a disgusting slug when there isn't even an index in this thing," she muttered, and Sef turned, hoping that the others didn't come out of the kitchen and see what they had done.

Jade sighed and stood, kicking the book shut. "I guess there isn't anything special about it, let's just go back upstairs," she muttered angrily, but Sef didn't follow. Instead, he reopened the book and looked through its dusty contents, still very afraid of the contents within it but too fascinated to turn away. Jade did not notice he was missing and instead began to climb the stairs, thinking he was right behind her or perhaps had gone back into the kitchen for something.

He flipped through the seemingly countless pages when suddenly he realized it was a spell book of some kind, each passage beginning with a strange, foreign phrase then followed by a description of what the spell was able to do. He was nearing the end of it, looking at various spells and incantations when he came upon one that interested and confused him.

"This sounds strange, a spell for 'the embodiment of chi?' That sounds kinda weird, but why not? This stuff can't really be real," he thought to himself, looking at the directions and reading them quietly to himself. He heard Jade upstairs, probably retiring for the night. Sef was still hoping he wouldn't be discovered as he read the instructions.

"While this chi spell takes unbreakable concentration for those who mutter it, no physical ingredients are needed for this to be successful. All that must be done is the words of the incantation uttered by the one who wishes for the embodiment of their chi without pausing or mistake, or else the chi spell is void," Sef read aloud, shrugging at the end and looking back up at the small enchanting words, trying to pronounce the words in his head before he spoke them so he wouldn't make a mistake. Finally, when he felt he had prepared enough, he looked at the incantation with an unbroken stare, saying each word rhythmically without faltering.

"Jai'chi Jai'chi Amin-sai," he muttered swiftly, and suddenly the house fell into darkness once again, but this time the lights did not flicker back to life as they had before. He could hear the others in the dining room become aware of this.

"Aiya! Another blackout!" Uncle exclaimed, followed shortly by something falling over and breaking. Sef screeched quietly in fear of being seen with the incriminating book and quickly shut the book and shoved it away, planning to pretend it had never happened. A small light came to life in the kitchen, moving in several directions until it reached the threshold into the shop, the small blanket hanging from the ceiling that acted as a door pushed aside as Jackie entered the room, grasping a flashlight and shining it in Sef's direction.

"Are you all right Sef?" he asked quietly, and Sef nodded, trying to look innocent without much success.

"Do not worry, blackouts occur all the time here,' Jackie assured him, and Sef merely nodded, muttering "I'm not afraid..." even though his voice shook.

"Come on, let's get you upstairs and into bed. You have school tomorrow remember?" Jackie said cheerfully, and he began to turn and head towards the stairway, waving for Sef to follow.

Suddenly something leapt out of the darkness towards Jackie, a flash of something shining into the nightly darkness as Jackie turned just in time to see it, shrieked, and leapt out of the way. Sef screamed before clapping his hands over his mouth, not wanting to attract the attention of whatever that thing was. With the sudden commotion, Uncle and Tohru suddenly appeared in the shop, both of them now each grasping a candle.

"What is going on in here?" Uncle demanded, shining the dim and dying light of the candle first on a horrified Sef, then on a horrified Jackie, and then on...

...another Sef?

Sef repressed a scream yet again as the candlelight revealed another figure who looked just like him, except he was far more frightening. He wore entirely black clothing and was grasping a rusted sword, the same amulet hanging from his neck strung by a thin silver chain. He was also taller than the other Sef by at least a few inches, standing just a few feet from where Jackie was sprawled out on the carpet. He was grinning at all those who looked at him.

"Who is that?" Tohru asked in slight fear, and just as he did the figure spoke, crouching down as though he were planning to attack.

"I am the dark chi of Sef, the embodiment of his inner darkness," the incarnate hissed, looking at the real Sef, who stood with his teeth chattering and now grasping a random lamp as a weapon, staring wide-eyed and unblinking at the separate form of himself.

"How did this happen?" Uncle asked, when suddenly he spied the book laying just a few inches from Sef's bare feet, a dead leaf that had blown in marking the very page he had been on. Sef's look of terror turned in a slightly innocent smile as he realized he been found out.

"Aiya! He read from the book that contains only chi spells relating to darkness!" Uncle exclaimed, and suddenly Sef's dark incarnate lunged for the original Sef, who screamed and then swung the lamp and shattered the object against his head. The figure disappeared back into the shadows, promising without words that it would attack soon enough. Sef gulped and backed away from the shadows, looking for another possible weapon.

"How do we get rid of Dark Sef?" Jackie asked from on the floor, leaping back up to his feet as he searched the darkness for his assailant. Suddenly footsteps could be heard climbing back down the staircase, and Jackie shined the flashlight on a half-asleep, confused Jade, who was still rubbing her eyes wearily.

"What's going on? I heard stuff breaking down here and screams," she said quietly, but before Jackie could assure her that nothing was wrong and for her to go back to bed, Uncle spoke the truth Jackie thought could have been avoided.

"Sef uttered a dark chi spell that caused a dark incarnate of himself to form," Uncle said, and Jade's eyes widened with excitement as she leapt over the railing and landed beside Jackie, looking a bit angry at Sef.

"You did that without me? Traitor," she muttered in his direction though it sounded sarcastic. Sef just shrugged and wore a fake innocent smile yet again.

"Oh yes, it would be better to have a Dark Sef _and_ a Dark Jade running around," Jackie said sarcastically as he continued to watch out for Dark Sef, who had not shown himself since Sef had whacked him away with the lamp. He seemed to be listening to them, for when they stopped talking, he laughed darkly and spoke again.

"You are all fools. I do not have any quarrels with anyone here except my original form, Sef. If I manage to kill him there will be no hope of sealing me away ever again," Dark Sef proclaimed, suddenly leaping out of the darkness and bringing one strong arm around Sef's arms and chest, the rusted sword pressed against the flesh of his neck with the other hand grasping the handle. Sef cringed and his eyes begged for help from the others, though as he turned he saw only his own dark, now lifeless eyes staring back. He shut his eyes tightly, trying to remove the image from his mind.

"You are lucky that this is an easy spell to counter Sef, or else this would be a very big problem," Uncle muttered, suddenly speaking quietly, holding his hands into a strange gesture as he chanted.

"Jai'chi Jai'chi Amin-Dai," he said quietly, and suddenly the dark form once threatening Sef's life suddenly vanished completely with a strangled scream, and Sef collapsed to the floor, horrified how close to dying he had been. Jackie and Jade were immediately at his sides, helping him back onto his feet as he shook profusely. Uncle and Tohru approached, Uncle having crossed his arms and looking down angrily at Sef.

"This will be lesson enough not to go playing with Uncle's books ever again!" he warned darkly and loudly, turning away and being followed by Tohru, who merely nodded in agreement to Uncle's declaration and following his master back into the dining room. The lights instantly came back on the moment that Uncle had said the incantation, the darkness that had been freed from Sef having fled from the counter spell.

"I think it is time for the both of you to go to bed," Jackie said grimly and wearily, pushing the two small figures towards the stairway and leading them up to the bedroom. He closed the door and waited outside until he could no longer hear their voices before he left.

Sef decided he was too tired and terrified to change into his pajamas and merely collapsed into his bed, pulling the covers up to the base of his nose and looking off into the darkness searching for Jade, hoping that his dark incarnate did not somehow mysteriously appear. She spoke quietly so Jackie couldn't hear.

"Don't say anything for a few minutes and he'll go away," she said, and Sef nodded and waited for around a quarter of an hour later. Jackie indeed did leave, his footsteps echoing down the stairs as they began cleaning up the mess that the dark chi spell had caused in its wake.

Jade sat up in bed and switched on the small lamp next to her bed. "Don't let them get you down. Uncle usually gets over people fooling around with his stuff quickly, probably because he's at the age where he forgets everything as fast as they've happened."

Sef smiled with her encouragement, but it quickly faded into nothing again.

"But I am a guest here, and I should have known not to do something so reckless. But why would you wish to use something so evil?" Sef asked, remembering her utterance about using a spell against someone at school.

"I dunno, there's a bully at my school whose always getting on my nerves and putting me down, so I thought it'd be funny to have him come to school with an extra head or something," Jade said with a sly grin, crossing her arms behind her head and relaxing against the pillows, seeming wide awake now with what had happened.

"My father told me that revenge is just as bad as the crimes that caused it to be," he said, but Jade yawned in answer to his belief.

"Let's just get to sleep. I'm sure all this will be forgotten once tomorrow comes along," Jade said, falling asleep within seconds of her final words, a gentle snoring ringing out into the dark room as Sef huddled under his sheets. He was amazed at how casually she was taking this, as though dark creatures had loomed around this place and confronted her numerous times. He found it strange, but pushed aside any suspicions.

Try as he might, he knew he would never get any sleep this night, for every time he closed his eyes, the darkness of himself he had seen kept staring back.


	4. Something's Amiss

Sef was awakened the following morning by Jade's inconsistent and rather annoying pushing and shouts, trying to arouse him so they could get to school on time.  
  
"Wake up sleepy head! We're gonna be late for school if you keep laying there doing nothing!" she exclaimed, flailing her arms about as though it were a major crisis. Sef responded by pulling the many layers of blankets over his head.  
  
"C'mon, you can't lay in this bed all day," Jade said angrily, ripping the sheets and Oriental quilts that Jackie had placed on Sef's guest bed off of him. Sef recoiled from the sudden light and cold and curled into a fetal position, keeping his eyes closed tightly and stubbornly.  
  
He was still very tired, the kind of weariness that surfaces when you have slept through the entire night only to face many tiring nightmares, robbing you of your energy and focus. He continued to stare into the darkness of his eyelids happily; it was the first time his slumber, though partially broken, had gone uninterrupted by haunting visions.  
  
That is, until Jade seized the strength to tear up the mattress from underneath him, casting him from the comfort of his bed onto the carpet, receiving a mouthful of lint that had gathered there unhindered for many years. He spat out the clumps of fabric and ground-in dirt as Jade continued to loom menacingly over him.   
  
"Get up, get changed, and get downstairs for breakfast. If you thought that Uncle was cranky last night, you're gonna have a whole new perspective on things if you're late getting to your first day of school here," Jade warned with a serious tone overlaying a humored one, rushing out of the door and humming a repetitive tune as she scampered down the spiral stairs. Sef groaned and rolled onto his back, cringing as the overhead light burned into his unprepared retinas. Today was going to be a long day.  
  
He finally managed to get himself up and out of his wrinkled clothes from the pervious day, slipping into an identical outfit and trying to stay awake on his feet. Jade sprinted in just as Sef was preparing to leave, running a comb through his notoriously tangled hair.  
  
Jade noticed immediately what made Sef look so strange and foreign. He wore different articles of seeming tradition jewelry all over himself, golden bands looped around his neck and wrists, two strange tablets hanging as earrings that had some strange symbol carved into it. A headband bore the same symbol, as well as an amulet bearing the emblem. A sinister and unblinking black eye it depicted, staring into all their souls it seemed from its stone imprisonment.   
  
"Nice uh...jewelry you got there Sef," Jade noted with an uneasy tone. He seemed to be going out of his way to gain the negative attentions of his new classmates. But Sef seemed to fail to notice the worry in her tone, for he smiled and ran his fingers along one of the shimmering wristbands with a gleam of pride.  
  
"I know, they were ceremoniously worn by a pharaoh of Egypt long ago. My father dug them up and gave them to me as a birthday present a few years ago. The pharaoh that wore them died young, succumbed to sickness before assassins or natural causes got to him, but they always give me strength it seems, especially this," he indicated the amulet by grasping it in his hand, displaying it to her from the palm of his hand, "I found this scattered with a bunch of other things he dug up and kinda stole it. I dunno why; it seemed ordinary to begin with, but ever since I first put it on, I've felt it can get through anything that may hinder me."  
  
Jade wasn't so sure, even with his motivational speech. She swore the eye engraved on the slab of stone moved at one point or another, but she wasn't about to argue. Instead, she changed the subject by swiftly grasping his wrist and pulling him from the room.  
  
"C'mon, breakfast awaits!" she proclaimed, yanking him from the room and down the dizzying staircase into the shop, where the lamp Sef had broken was still laying untouched upon the ground in many pieces. Sef made a note to himself to clean it up after he had eaten, but he soon found himself pushed into a rickety chair with a surprisingly cultureless meal before him. Eggs and toast strewn across a plate, Jade's sitting beside his half-eaten. She took her seat and greedily devoured the rest, suppressing a burp at the end.  
  
"Eat quickly or we're gonna be late!" she commanded as she drank down her orange juice sloppy, several gushes of the drink nearly staining her clothes as she hurried. Sef did as she said and quickened his pace, engulfing his food at an alarming rate as he suddenly noticed the lack of others around the shop. He stopped eating for a moment and listened for any signs of someone else moving around the entire house but sensed nothing, only heard Jade seizing up her plates and utensils and walking them into the kitchen.  
  
"Where did everyone go?" Sef asked curiously, feeling that something was definitely amiss with the entire house empty, save them of course. Jade didn't reply for a moment, instead the sound of a loud faucet becoming present, and then she poked her head into the threshold, wearing the same nervous smile that she had worn the night before when Sef had question Tohru's duties as Uncle's apprentice. This confirmed his suspicions, but he knew enough not to pry. If there was something going on, it was none of his business.  
  
"Uh...hmmm...Jackie and the guys went to pick up some new merchandise for the shop from a dealer on the other side of the city," she said, a blatant lie that Sef didn't challenge. He merely smiled innocently, cocked his head to one side and said, "All right, just making sure." Jade seemed calmed that he didn't ask questions, for she immediately preoccupied herself in the kitchen. Sef's smile faded after she had disappeared, becoming an uneasy frown as he considered the hesitation in her excuse.   
  
It was obviously false, but the truth that it was covering had shown to be important in the worried gleam in her eyes. Sef could always tell when there was something wrong, but this was none of his concern considering he was a visitor and nothing more. He sighed and sat back down, finishing his breakfast hastily and getting up to pick up the shattered pieces of the lamp off the carpet. But before he could even reach it, Jade rushed into the shop carrying both his and her own backpack, thrusting his at him and now dragging him by the slack strap of the bag.   
  
"No time for that! Tohru will clean it up when they get back. Must get to school," she said in a chaotic manner, Sef instead more concerned with the smell of burnt rubber as he sneakers were dragged over the cement of the sidewalk, but he sighed and allowed it.  
  
About two blocks later Jade finally calmed down, seeming to relax once they were out of sight of the shop, but Sef kept his mouth closed and instead immersed himself in listening to her as she began to speak with a revived excitement in her voice.  
  
"Tell me Sef, do you believe in magic and sorcery?" she begun, and Sef thought it odd she would ask this after what had happened the night before, but he answered anyways.  
  
"Well, it would seem a bit foolish not to after what happened last with Dark Sef," Sef said with a smile, and Jade looked as though she had already forgotten about it but nodded in agreement.  
  
"You haven't seen anything yet! Uncle's always getting in artifacts that have all sorts of curses and chi spells cast on them. Some of them are cool, some of them are boring, but most of them are dangerous," she added with a mischievous smirk, and Sef gulped silently and nodded for her to continue.  
  
"I think the coolest things were these talismans that were each inscribed with a different animal of the Chinese zodiac, and each one gave you a specific ability," Jade said, remembering the chaos such small artifacts had caused in the past. Sef didn't quite trust that twinkle in her eye as she did so.  
  
"That sounds interesting, a different ability to match the animal carved upon it..." Sef thought back, remembering a similar set of amulets that his father had come upon in Egypt years ago, but they had been confiscated by an unknown organization for having been too dangerous and hard to control. The whole thing had been a hushed affair, and even Sef's father had had little knowledge of what had ever happened to the scared amulets.   
  
"But there were always people after them, especially this guy named Valmont and his gang the Dark Hand. He was possessed by a dragon demon named Shendu that almost freed all his demon siblings from another realm, and he has control over the Shadowkhan, these really fast and scary ninjas that I even got to control once, sort of by accident," Jade said, and Sef was suddenly giving her a strange expression.  
  
"What was that name you said at the beginning?" he asked, pondering what it could have been.  
  
"Valmont, he's the leader of the Dark Hand like I said," Jade repeated, crossing her arms as though he should have been hanging on to her every word.  
  
"That sounds really familiar. I think my father did some business with him once a few years ago. He had a small home in Egypt and often collected artifacts by buying them off of archeologists like my father and hiring them for excavations. But that was a long time ago, and it's not like he's the only rich man there that was able to do such things," Sef thought, tracing his index finger under his chin as he thought about this, and then his expression turned dark, "I can't believe my father did business with a man possessed by a demon..."  
  
"He probably wasn't back then, he only got possessed after he arrived here to San Francisco and messed around with some artifacts he shouldn't have," Jade said as she picked up and examined a broken bottle, and Sef thought about this and felt a bit more relieved.  
  
"Do you...do you believe all the things I'm saying...?" Jade suddenly asked, tossing the bottle into an alleyway and listening as it shattered upon the ground, glass streaking all about the ground.   
  
"Why wouldn't I? I could tell by the way you spoke about it with such emphasis in your voice that you were telling the truth. Besides, even if it were an elaborate lie, at least it calmed me down for beginning in a new school," Sef replied, and Jade smiled and caught up from where she had paused, looking into the darkness of the alleyway, swearing she saw something stir in the depths of its shadows.  
  
"A lot of people at my school think I'm crazy and that I make things up, but you don't think so right?" she asked with a bit of a saddened expression, and Sef nodded.  
  
"I just told you, I believed every word you said. I can't exactly say that I don't believe in sorcery and such things after facing down a dark incarnation of myself only a few hours ago, that would be a little contradicting don't you think?" he added with a grin that Jade returned. She threw a loose arm over his shoulders and indicated the approaching school ahead with a casual wave, placed upon a rarely large patch of grass near the center of the city.   
  
"Sef, I have the feeling that this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship," she said with a smile, and Sef felt only more welcomed as he forced his nervousness aside and placed his arm around Jade's shoulder in return.  
  
-------------------------  
  
"Ratso you moron, you almost gave us away!" Finn shouted in a whisper as the three of them tripped and toppled over one another, creeping out from where they had been hiding behind a city-owned dumpster. All except Hak Foo of course, who needed the entire space behind another dumpster in order to conceal himself on the other side of the alley. He was looking impatient, clenching and unclenching his fists as he watched the empty streets.   
  
"Don't blame it on me! Chow was barely even hidden behind the dumpster and Chan's niece saw him move," Ratso retaliated, and immediately afterwards the three of them were arguing with one another and shouting a few obscene things at the others, a few threats of physical violence present but never taking action. Their fight was only broken when Hak Foo tired of listening to them and interceded, picking up Finn and Chow in one hand and Ratso in the other.  
  
"We will accomplish nothing is we are revealed by your shouting," he spat in all their directions, letting go of the collars of their shirts and allowing them to plummet back down to the ground where they did as he said and remained quiet.  
  
"Why are we here so earlier anyways if we're going to kidnap the kid after school's out?" Finn asked as he stood and rubbed his rear end. The others were brushing off their clothes, the same question buzzing through their heads as well.  
  
Valmont's voice rang overhead as he watched from over the railing of a fire escape, now staring venomously down at them.  
  
"We are here because I am not risking having the boy slip through my fingers yet again, especially after your pathetic failure earlier," Valmont replied, continuing to watch over the city with an unblinking gaze. He could still see Jade and Sef making their way up the stairs into the school, Sef rushing ahead to hold the door open for her.  
  
Valmont smiled and watched as they both disappeared inside the building. _'Enjoy your first and last day in school Sef Artaxerxes...' _


	5. First Days of School are the Worst

** Author's Note**: I just wanted to say** thanks** to everyone who reviewed my story so far. It's really encouraged me to continue writing it. I'm just thankful that I've managed to keep Sef's character from transforming into a dreaded Gary Stu; let's just hope it continues! And please do warn me if it does, I know how infamous some invented characters can become.

And now, on to the fifth installment of 'Kurayami.'

Sef was suddenly feeling nervous again. The hallways were filled to the brim with other students, all filing along the hallway casually to get to class on time. Jade led Sef to the appropriate class, with an uninvited tug on the sleeve of his shirt, where the teacher greeted them both with a wide grin as they entered rather hastily.

"Class, we have a new student to welcome to our school today. This is Sef Artaxerxes, a foreign exchange student from Egypt that Jade's uncle Jackie is hosting," the teacher introduced him immediately, and Sef felt his face turn a vibrant shade of crimson with embarrassment as he waved quickly and frantically. As he expected, he heard some snickers for many of the boys of the class, eyeing the articles of jewelry he was wearing, but he tried not to allow it to get to him. He followed Jade over to the far side of the room, taking a seat in the desk behind hers that was currently vacant.

"Why is it you're over here all by yourself?" Sef whispered as he took his seat and got out his supplies quietly. Jade shrugged and gave him a sly smile, turning and leaning her arm casually on the back of her chair.

"Classroom disruptions and an overactive imagination, at least that's what Ms. Wilson said," she replied as though proud of the acclaimed accusations, and Sef leaned back into his chair and watched as the teacher began to write up on the board, instructing them to take notes though many of the other students were already busy doing just that. They began with history, Sef's best subject, excited that he would now begin to fully grasp some of America's interesting history, of which he had barely ever learned back in Egypt. He scribbled down everything she wrote and said with fascination; he had already memorized everything about the ancient Egyptian culture and history and had hoped he would learn such things once he had gotten to America. Now was the opportunity he had hoped to gain by coming here.

Time flew by fast as his interest continued to rise with each new subject Ms. Wilson introduced, ending with the introduction into the famed Civil War when suddenly the bell at the front of the room sounded, loud and piercing but tolerable since he sat near the back. Sef looked up and wondered what was going to happen next as the room suddenly buzzed with renewed life.

"Lunchtime," Jade said happily, rubbing her hands together and licking her lips as she snagged her backpack up off the floor. Sef realized he hadn't made himself one but opened his bag anyways to see a neatly folded paper bag sitting in it, containing a juice box, sandwich, and some cookies stacked neatly inside a plastic bag.

"Jackie made us our lunches before he left this morning, but Uncle will probably have us make our own each night before we head to sleep so we don't forget next time," Jade informed and warned him, and he smiled and reminded himself to thank Jackie once they got home at the end of the day.

"Ms. Wilson, since it's such a nice day outside, do you think it would be okay for us to go outside and eat, just this once?" a young girl asked in an overly polite voice in the front of the room. Ms. Wilson seemed to consider this before she nodded, Sef noticing her make a quick glance in Jade's general direction as she thought about it.

"All right, line up by the door and I'll take you outside, but you all have to promise to behave and stay off the playground until recess begins," she said, and everyone cheered and rushed to the front of the room, except for Jade and Sef who took their time getting there.

The class proceeded outside where every child took off into a different direction, many of them trying to get a nice place in the shade to eat. Jade and Sef exited last of course, instead deciding to sit on a bench and eat since every inch of shadow beneath the trees had already been claimed. They pulled their lunches back out of their bags and started to eat, attempting to ignore the blistering sun pouring fire upon them from above.

"It was nice of Jackie to make us these, especially considering I forgot all about it in our rush this morning," Sef said with a smile and his mouth full, having stuffed half the sandwich in with his first bite. Jade nodded and ate quickly as well, both of them consuming their food before getting into a juice-squirting fight with their juice boxes, resulting in Sef chasing Jade across the grass with his drink held out, the straw pointing in her direction as he took aim.

But his chase was suddenly brought to an end when a group of boys stood in his way, appearing from the shadows of a hedge wall nearby, Jade turning around a few undisturbed yards after them to see his progress had been blocked. Sef casually brought the juice box up to his mouth and sipped from it, knowing already the boys presence there solely was to mock him.

"What are you, some sort of girl? What kind of boy wears jewelry and earrings?" the head boy laughed, putting his hands onto his waist in a superior fashion as the others joined in making up jokes.

"Yeah, why don't you get a hair cut or something before you start tripping over it," said the one to the right.

"Maybe you could grow a few inches too," said the one to the left. It was the same generic comments no matter where he went it seemed.

Sef had his empty hand clenched tight into a fist but his expression was emotionless. He had heard this same ridicule everywhere in the past and already knew the sting of being teased and taunted. The comments made about the way he dressed had long since become emulations of the last and painless, but the consistent remarks never ceased to make his blood boil regardless of how many times he had been forced to endure them. It was his pride acting up in defense every time he was ridiculed, but he rarely lashed back in vengeance. He usually just allowed people to mock him for as long as they wanted and seemingly get it out of their system, but before they were close to being done from what he could sense of their nature, Jade interjected, leaping over their heads and landing gracefully in between them and Sef, who stared in amazement at her acrobatic skills. He would have to ask her later how to attempt such stealth.

"Hey, if all of you want a laugh just go find a reflective surface somewhere, though looking into a mirror might break it," she said with a grin, and the boys paused for a moment of frozen stares before the taunting began yet again. Sef slapped his forehead, already knowing what was going to be said after her defense.

"Jade's got a boyfriend, Jade's got a boyfriend," the group of boy's chanted, shouting it so everyone could hear. The attentions of all the rest of their classmates fell upon them, a few giggles and chuckles heard amongst them as everyone now watched the childish confrontation taking place. Sef didn't blush but Jade did, though only briefly before she argued back.

"Sef is not my boyfriend! And besides Drew," she said, indicating the boy leading the group, "wasn't it you who was holding Julie's hand on the last field trip, for the whole time?"

And thus the boys immediately turned their attention to pestering their former leader, chasing him off mutinously as he kept shouting that it wasn't true. Somehow Sef actually believed it wasn't, but was glad their attention was drawn away from him, if only for today.

"Sorry about that Sef, don't let your opinion of those guys ruin your time here, they're the only real jerks around school," Jade attempted to comfort him, glaring daggers at everyone else who was looking to ward them off from remembering this event, while thinking the criticism had gotten to him. But he merely smiled weakly and shrugged.

"You've heard it once, you've heard it a hundred times," he said casually. Having become immune to the constant tortures of his peers long ago this wasn't a surprising or scarring event, but he sighed and kicked a rock wearily to channel out the slightly oppressive anger, knowing it would vent its way out of him with time.

"Don't worry, first days of school are always the worst," Jade assured him with a friendly yet firm pat to his back that threatened to topple him as he nearly stumbled over a stray rock laying in the walkway.

Recess began only a few short moments later, but neither of them felt very much like climbing upon the crowded and territorial playground. Instead they immersed themselves in making the clouds into different forms within their imagination as they laid upon the soft, cushiony grass below with their eyes towards the heavens. Sef laughed himself to tears when Jade pointed out one that she said looked like Drew sprouting a pig's tail and devil's horns. At least she thought it did so long as you observed it in an inverted fashion. Either way it humored him and helped expel some of the tension he had felt since the mocking he had recieved.

The bell rung and soon they had all shuffled back into the musty classroom, having moved on to Sef's worst subject, the ancient and grueling torment known as Math, and after what seemed like an eternity after the new session had begun the final bell rung and there was a unified shriek of happiness throughout the entire class. Sef let out a quiet sigh of relief as Jade tossed her backpack over her back and leapt from her chair with a defiant stand, like a slave being freed of her shackles.

Once again Jade and Sef took their time leaving the classroom, both of them smart enough to know that trying to get out of there quickly usually led to being trampled by their classmates. Sef sighed sadly and slightly annoyedly now, feeling the weight of the night's homework causing him to slump in an unnatural and slightly painful way, as well as knowing that the bulk of said homework was Math.

They walked out onto the street to see that many of the other children had departed, the buses beginning to leave in different directions. Sef followed Jade closely and tried to memorize the fairly simple route to the school for himself should he ever have to go to school without her during his visit here. He knew statistically she was bound to come down with some sort of sickness during his stay here and wanted to be prepared. Knowing his ill fortune he predicted he would get every disease known to man in this more populated city within a few days.

It was only after a city block of quiet walking or so that Sef suddenly felt very nervous, as though something were wrong that he couldn't identify. It reminded him of the fear he had felt the night before when Dark Sef had emerged from within himself, like something unnatural was within the vacinity near him. Something the world itself condemned, like a plague slowly seeping into the city. Jade noticed his uneasiness almost immediately. She turned and faced him, both of her hands clenching the straps to her backpack to keep it from sliding away. She looked partially concerned but mostly impatient.

"What's wrong Sef? You look like you just saw a two-headed dragon spewing flames out its nose," she said with a faint smile to cheer his suddenly grim mood, but Sef shook his head and continued to worry regardless.

"It's nothing, probably just a cold coming on or something," he said with a hesitant grin, and Jade instantly saw through the lie.

"It' something else. Mind telling me what it is?" she persisted. Sef only shrugged and wiped his nose a bit to support his first theory.

"I just have a bad feeling is all, kinda like last night when that dark incarnation thing of me got loose. Like there's something dark nearby, but I can't tell where or what it is," Sef said, and Jade suddenly looked around, trying to find what he was talking about.

"You sure? I've been exposed to quite a few evil things in the past and I can't sense anything right now," she said, walking a bit ahead to look into a dark alleyway nearby, where the sounds of a fleeing stray cat caught her attention.

"I don't know, maybe it's just a bad feeling and that's all," Sef said, never turning to see the dark figures looming nearby and drawing nearer towards him.

Before he even realized there was anyone there, a hand was suddenly clasped over his mouth to silence him. The crushing grasp it held over him kept his jaw from moving at all, and he could only writhe and attempt to break free. His hands immediately and instictively rose to the two massive hands choking the life out of him, attempting to break their grasp without any success from his scrawny arms and nonexistant muscles. The only sound that came out, even with all his efforts, was a strangled murmur of surprise and terror. Jade was too busy spying around the corner of the alleyway to see what was happening.

Before she even looked back, Sef was pulled into a dark alleyway, where the light vanished all around him in disorientation and and unexplained void surrounding his captors. He could barely make them out as his oxygen began to deplete, but he was released only a moment later, thrust gently against one of the brick buildings the alley was wedged between. He tumbled to his knees, the cruel pavement below tearing at his flesh as he looked up to see four strange individuals towering over him, none of their eyes directed in his vicinity but instead towards one another. He nearly vomited with the thick stench in the air from the nearby dumpsters and the fear suddenly coursing throughout him, wondering what was going on mixed with his previous terrible feelings.

"I'm guessing Valmont wants us to bring him back to the warehouse?" the one with fiery red hair said, tugging confidently on his shirt collar as he turned to his three comrades. Two of them were tall and loomed overhead while the third was small but versatile, his eyes covered by orange tinted sunglasses. Sef wondered what they wanted with him first, and then sensed the strange feeling once more that he was in danger. It was emitting from their figures but he knew it was originating from somewhere else. He took the few short seconds of silence and considering on their part to examine them so he would have detailed description for the police.

That is, if he ever made it to the police...

He would have run immediately, but he soon found he wasn't going anywhere as the large being with long, crimson hair suddenly grasped him by the collar of his vest, wrenching him off the ground with great ease. Sef kicked and yelped but found it hard with his shirt collar tightening around his neck like a noose.

"Let go of me! What's going on? Is this some sort of strange American custom?" he shouted, the last statement more to cure his terror with a dose of humor as he attempted to kick his attacker away. But it was like driving his foot into a brick wall, and he yelped and grasped his ankle, which was now throbbing with pain. He had more than likely strained it with that foolish manuver. Now how was he going to run away effectively?

"Yeah kid, it's a game called 'shut the heck up and don't say or a word or pay the price,'" the shorter man with orange hair said with a rather cunning smile as he ran his fingers through his hair confidently, and Sef gulped as he realized what was going on.

"Oh great, I go to a new country just so I can be kidnapped..." he murmured, and suddenly the massive fighter tucked him under his arm, carrying him as he would a package. He continued to writhe against the force but was quickly silenced and halted with a deathly glare from the beast of a man grasping him.

"I don't understand. What use have you in kidnapping a foreign exchange student? I mean, I only arrived here yesterday, you'd have to have been watching me to know..." he trailed off and turned a ghostly shade of pale, suddenly shivering.

"We've been watching you for quite a few months, _Sef_. Hey I got the name right for once. Man, is your life boring! I mean what could be interesting about unearthing bones and tombs everyday?" the orange-haired one said who had first spoken, and Sef scowled, though seeming unthreatening as he was clenched like a bundle underneath the enormous stranger's arm.

"Let's just get the brat back to the warehouse before we get into trouble again," the smaller individual with the sunglasses said, tucking his hands away into the pockets of his black leather jacket. The eerie calmness his captors all held frightened him more than anything. It was as though they did this sort of thing often and it was nothing more than a casual event. The second burly one with the deathly skin and a rather grotesque appearence pounded his fist into the other hand in silent warning of what would happen if Sef did attempt to escape.

He couldn't allow panic to consume him, or he knew he was only going to get himself into more trouble or danger. So far his captors seemed relatively unthreatening to his health, at least at this present time, but he knew wherever they were taking him wasn't good. Reading from the feelings he had possessed earlier when they must have been watching him, he could tell something dark was in the makings and obviously involved him. He had to escape these strangers or face whatever that darkness was, and by what he could feel even at this distance he knew it would be his end if he did.

So he did the only thing he could think to break the massive man's hold over him. He sunk his teeth as hard as he could into the flesh of his arm, and immediately heard a deep yelp from above as the painfully tight grip around his waist loosened enough for him to swiftly wriggle his way out. He spat out the bit of blood that had entered his mouth as he fell to the ground. Landing onto his feet rather clumsily, he instinctively then threw a punch at the one who had grabbed him.

Once again it felt as though he were impacting a brick wall, and he quickly recoiled, shaking his aching wrist in pain, and simply ran for his life before the others could make heads or tails of what was happening, an effect of his escape he hoped he could take advantage of. At least he knew he may be fast enough to outrun them, even limping with the injury of his previous and identical foolishness.

'What were you thinking Sef? You're a white belt for crying out loud! It's just like sensei always said, your ego is better than your self...' his thoughts screamed through his head as he fled. He had stuided martial arts at one of the few dojo's throughout Egypt, hoping to learn some self-defence tactics to greatly lessen his chances of being easy trampled by others who mistook his size. He saw now that he needed a few more centuries of practice before he would ever grasp the principles of evaluation and common sense involving conflicts.

Jade was standing but a few feet away, her eyes darting across the span of the street as she seemed to be looking frantically for him in his brief vanishing act. When she spotted him, she first looked relieved, that is, until she saw his kidnappers rush around the corner of the building looking furious at his escape attempt. Sef gasped and progressed forward, trying not to look back.

Jade waited for him and then seized his wrist, running far faster than him once more and dragging him across the cement as she had when they were racing towards school, this time in an erratic pattern. She seemed to be looking for a method through which they could evade his attempted captors. He could hear their pounding footsteps growing closer from behind, a few utterances of anger emitting from them that made his blood run cold.

"We have to get out of here! I have no idea what those creeps want with you but all I need to know is they're bad news," Jade exclaimed though she needn't confirm this. Sef could very well see they were in deep trouble as their pursuers were coming on quick. He noticed she seemed familiar with these individuals somehow and made a mental note even with the discord of his mind to ask her later about it.

"Is this what you meant when you said first days of school are the worst?"


	6. There's Something Dark in the Makings

Jackie leaned against the wall near the open window, glancing out every now and then and wondering what could be keeping Captain Black. The agent had called to say he was going to be late, but it had already been an hour over when he had claimed he would be there. Jackie was worried about Jade and Sef arriving home and being unsupervised until he got back from this engagement, but Uncle had claimed this meeting with him was about something very important.

What he was the most shocked about was the fact that it had been Uncle had made the arrangements of this sudden conference with Captain Black and Section 13, but he hadn't hesitated to go along with it even so early in the morning. They had simply left instructions for Jade and hoped, or rather, prayed she would follow them and headed off to school with Sef at the appropriate time. He knew that if Uncle had concerns about something then they all should be worried as well. Uncle didn't kid around or question when he felt something was wrong, and because of that Jackie knew this had to be serious. This fact unnerved him a bit, but for now he was holding his calm demeanor and simple awaiting the arrival of his comrade. Several workers within the section passed and greeted him, but he only briefly uttered a friendly hello back. he couldn't shake the feeling himself that something was indeed wrong.

Augustus walked in only a moment after his contemplations, shuffling through a stack of seemingly endless paperwork as a stream of sweat slithered down the edge of his face. It was obvious he had been working for hours, probably stressed to the brim and making Jackie feel almost guilty about having come bothered him with Uncle's suspicions. But his friend didn't reveal any other weaknesses as he tossed the forms aside and approached them with his usual confident stride.

"So what can I help you with today Jackie? Sorry I got in a little late; our flight from South Africa got delayed thanks to a plague of locust," Augustus said, brushing off his black trench coat as he halted before them, shoving his hands into his pockets in a casual manner.

"A plague of locust?" Jackie asked, his voice filled with concern and surprise, though knowing of their many adventures in the past, this sort of event must seem insignificant to his friend by this time.

"Yeah, we were investigating a possibly cursed temple there and one of the agents-in-training shattered one of the artifacts on display in the entrance hall. Needless to say whatever it was haunting that forsaken place wasn't happy; we're lucky to have escaped those ruins alive," Augustus said without relevance to the strangeness of the event. It had become causality by this time after pursuing the Dark Hand for several months and the ancient magic they dealt with in the process.

"So, what is it you wanted to see me about?" Augustus asked again, a faint smile of weariness appearing on his once serious features. Jackie sighed and was barely able to answer the question himself.

"Well, though he's been reluctant to tell us about it, Uncle seems worried about something that he felt Section 13 should be aware of," Jackie said, thinking he must sound pretty ignorant to come in with a concern that he didn't even know about or even have. But if Augustus was annoyed with this seemingly unfounded development, he was hiding it well enough as he indicated Jackie to merely follow him into a more secluded area of the massive building.

"Where is your Uncle and Tohru right now?" Augustus suddenly asked, looking around for the other expected individuals, but Jackie merely shrugged and looked around as well, confused by their sudden disappearances into the confines of Section 13. He seemed to be having more trouble keeping an eye on them lately than he did Jade, who seemed a bit more obedient with Sef around following her every move.

"Uncle just said there was something they needed to take care of and then they would meet up with us later, though I can't remember exactly when they actually departed. You know how it is, if I attempt to question Uncle I end up being hit upside the head," he said with a nervous smile, even now rubbing a slightly red mark forming on the back of his head from earlier.

"Well, we'll wait for them in the conference room. Until then I'd like to discuss with you something that's been bothering me a bit lately," Augustus said, leading the way as Jackie nodded, though feeling slightly disquieted. It seemed as though everything was going wrong right at the worst time, and now that he had custody over both Sef and Jade, children that happened to not be his own, he was beginning to feel pressured into being more a protector for them than ever.

He followed Augustus into the bleak room ahead and shut the door behind him, hoping that Uncle and Tohru wouldn't go getting themselves into any serious trouble within the expanses of Section 13.

"Master, you have not yet told me why we are conducting this chi spell," Tohru requested with a curious expression, holding in his hands the various ingredients to the spell that Uncle had managed to scrounge from a variety of locations throughout the cascading building. Even now he was on his knees crawling through the tall grasses of one of the botanical gardens created there to observe strange plant life, until he found what he was looking for and wrenched it forcefully from the protective soil beneath.

"We have not have much time, Tohru, to keep the boy safe. Even now I can sense he is in danger, and before I tell why he is hunted I must prevent him from being hunted," Uncle exclaimed, tossing the rather scrawny roots of something onto the rest of the burden and motioning for them to head to a patch of untouched floor where they could begin the incantations and concoctions required. They ended up huddled in between pieces of abandoned machinery in janitors closet where they knew they would not be disturbed or interrupted.

"Who has threatened Sef? He is merely a child visiting from another country, what would anyone want with him?" Tohru asked in rapid succession, setting down the articles he had been carrying and organizing them as Uncle produced a small sheet of torn paper with a rather long incantation scribbled hastily down onto it. Readjusting his glasses, he gave his instructions swiftly to Tohru but not before answering his question.

"It is the Dark Hand, and they seek something he possesses. This chi spell I will be performing will unlock a portion of the powers of this object and allow him to protect himself and Jade until we reach them. First, mix the bamboo roots with the Gingen spice roots I collected," he read off the sheet, and Tohru merely nodded, stirring and blending whatever Uncle said until the oozing contents within the small vile he was mixing it in poisoned the air with a foul smell, of which Tohru protected himself from by stuffing several tissues into his nose. Uncle did the same, leaving his voice sounding rather humorous as he begun to pour the ancient words from his mouth.

They reverberated off the walls in a strange way of eminence, and they both waited for a sign that indicated the spell had indeed commenced. They were answered as all the windows in the room burst open only seconds later, the electricity suddenly flickering on and off around them as discord became apparent. Machines were suddenly torn from the floor where they had rusted and collided with the ceiling overhead, small parts raining down upon them as they sat there watching for a few brief seconds. Uncle then stood and picked up the necessary potion that had been created.

"We must not let this elixir be disturbed, and the incantation must be said every four and a half minutes," Uncle exclaimed, carrying the potion with him carefully as they progressed towards the room through which they had seen Jackie and Captain Black pass. He held out a hand over the concoction, keeping the wind shrieking in through the open windows from stirring the mixture, Tohru following idly behind still carrying the stolen elements of the potion and looking worried.

"Will Sef be all right now that we have performed the chi spell?" he asked, jutting his head around from the side of the teetering stack of objects.

Uncle merely shrugged even with the apparent seriousness of the matter and his next statement. "It depends: If Sef lacks control over the abilities I had awakened, then he may be in even more danger than before. We must hurry to find him and pray the Dark Hand does not get to him first."

"Jade, what can we do to evade them? They seemed pretty intent on catching me..." Sef said as their two small figures ducked behind a stray trash can, keeping low as their adversaries came to a standstill nearby, searching frantically for them as they muttered things to themselves.

"What did you do to get _them_ after you?" Jade suddenly asked in a whisper, almost more to herself than him, and looking more aggravated than frightened She pulled Sef a bit more into the shadows as one of the men looked in their direction and just barely missed spotting him.

"They went after me without explanation! I don't know what they could want with me, but I have this really bad feeling there's something dark in the makings." Sef whispered in reply. "What is it you know about all of them anyways? You don't seem too frightened of them..."

"They're called the Dark Hand, and they're the enforcers for Valmont, you know, the guy with the demon Shendu possessing him? You said your father did business with him, so maybe he remembers you and wants something you have," Jade formulated swiftly, this time tugging down a curious Sef as he peered over the top of the trash can when their enemies were turned away.

"I don't know what they could possibly want that I have, but whatever it is I must have it with me now, or else they would have attempted to steal it from your house..." this realization made a pang of guilt run through his quivering being as he felt shame for causing all of this, and Jade could tell instantly what was plaguing him.

"Don't blame yourself for this Sef, these guys are notorious for showing up whenever there's something particularly valuable or powerful around," she muttered into his ear, attempting to sound encouraging but perhaps a bit too forceful in saying it. He only looked more regretful for his involvement in this mess beginning to unfold.

"Can you identify them? If you claim to know them then the police may be able to catch them if they know their names," he asked, and Jade one by one pointed out each member with an almost eerie accuracy and without hesitation. Sef couldn't help but wonder how she had become involved with such shady and obviously dangerous characters, but that was questioning that could be commenced for when they were out of harm's way.

"And that huge guy is called Hak Foo," she finished, just a little too loudly, for suddenly the attention of all the Dark Hand members was suddenly diverted into their direction. Sef clasped a futile hand over Jade's mouth a second too late.

"Shark Circles Prey," Hak Foo named his action as he usually did, and Sef did the only thing he could formulate as the four men approached their hiding place, waiting for the essential moment to do so.

He pressed his back against the building and kicked with all his might the full trashcan they were hidden behind away from them. It rolled fiercely against the pavement, spewing trash everywhere as it nearly collided with the awaiting Dark Hand members. They all managed to avert being hit, but it allowed a few vital seconds for Jade and Sef to get out of the cluttered alleyway and head in a random direction away from the scene. Sef noticed they were heading into the city and searched for somewhere to hide, anywhere that could conceal them long enough for them to call for help.

But before they could even make it an entire block away, he felt someone once again tug him by the back of his vest collar, their grip twisting the fabric so it suffocated him purposely this time. He heard Jade yelp before she was lifted into the air by her hair, kicking and demanding to be freed as she attempted to harm her captor. Ratso held her far enough away she couldn't get close enough to strike him however, and her efforts were in vain.

Finn had hold over him and lifted him up off the ground, smirking at him as he grunted with his efforts to break free. His skin was already growing cold with air deprivation and fear, but he continued to try and break free regardless of the paralyzing affects.

"Let us go Dark Morons!" Jade shrieked and spat in every direction, but she was instantly silenced as Ratso placed a firm hand over her mouth, though Sef could still her a rather loud and enraged squeal emitting from her as she writhed to get free.

"Let's get you kiddies back to Valmont before he gets impatient. If you think we're scary, you should see what happens when he gets aggravated," Finn said, releasing his collar only to wrap his fingers around his neck, his grip tightening each time Sef attempted to scream for help or pry himself free.

But time was beginning to run out. His vision was faltering as it had earlier, things becoming a chaotic blend of fear and pain. He felt himself shaking violently as he knew he wasn't going to be able to free himself this time, too concerned with Jade's and his own safety to make a distinct and assertive effort in freeing himself.

"Is this...what's going to happen to me...?"

His question was answered by a strange pulsation he suddenly felt, though for the moment he couldn't tell where it came from. It felt almost like a presence was arising from within him, and he looked down for the source and found it. His amulet was glimmering a bit, the unblinking black eye carved into the alabaster slab gleaming a bit in a radiant, golden light, growing brighter with each new pain that emerged in this attack. He stared at it, and the more he did so he felt a strange, unnatural strength surfacing beyond his flesh and within his spirit.

Finn seemed to realize it too, for suddenly he reached forward with the intentions of taking the amulet, or so it seemed, but quickly recoiled his hand with an expression of pain.

"That thing is burning hot!' he said, and suddenly Sef realized what was happening. A distant voice seemed to be telling him what to do, for without a single command of the mind his hands suddenly grasped the collars of Finn's suit, and Sef's once horrified expression turned into an angry stare.

"Let...go..." he said simply, and the suddenly a strange, black and fiery energy shot out from his hands and sent Finn soaring backwards, slamming his body into the wall of the building he had had his back towards. He fell to the ground in a daze as the others all turned to Sef, looking at him now in horror rather than amusement at his efforts.

He fell to the ground at a strangely slow rate, as though something were slowing his fall, and he felt suddenly different as the odd feeling turned into a burning sensation coming from the amulet itself, as though he were embodying something.

"What the...? Is that what Valmont wanted to get from that kid?" Ratso asked to Chow, who was staring open-mouthed as well at the sudden burst of inhuman power from the equally confused child, who was looking from them to a half-conscious Finn with the same questions himself. Jade had been released by a delirious Ratso and was staring as well, having gotten some distance away from her captor first.

"What's going on?!" Sef asked no one, instead feeling the concrete beneath his feet suddenly cracking with his question, remnants of the broken substance shooting up into the air as he screamed it. The presence was beginning to cause an agonizing pain throughout his entire being, like he was aflame and plummeting into a cold void at the same moment. He had never felt anything so terrible, and yet so empowering.

"Wow," was all Jade could say as she stood there absentmindedly on the ground, knowing she couldn't take this opportunity to run both out of amazement for the events unfolding and knowing that she couldn't leave Sef behind.

So thus she was the first person to make a move, and she leapt forward in front of the gawking Enforcers and simply grabbed his wrist, cringing with the burning sensation that shot through as she did so, and she then attempted to wrench him from this transformation.

But instead of simply returning to normal, the moment she touched him he emitted a blood-curdling scream and then fainted into her arms, the discord he had been causing around them fading as his consciousness did. She caught him and realized that his final action had emitted fire in every direction around himself before his powers had died away. As she clung to his limp body she looked all around to see flames eating away at the buildings around them, the air quickly filling with thick and oppressive smoke.

The Enforcers were beyond their disorientation now, even with the final action that Sef had made before collapsing, and Chow helped Finn get back into the group though he was still bent over rubbing his back stubbornly.

"So, do we just take the amulet?" Ratso asked as he scratched his head in curiosity, and Jade looked down to see the amulet had indeed returned to normal, no longer shimmering with that strange light as it had before.

"No you idiot! Valmont specifically said to bring both the amulet and the boy, so let's get them and get this over with," Finn hissed back in reply, obviously still in great pain from the attack against him earlier, and all eyes turned on Jade, who took a timid step backwards as she held Sef as carefully as she could.

She ran as fast as humanly possible away from them, clutching Sef like she was carrying a fragile vase. He mumbled a few things as he seemed to be regaining consciousness, but still hovered in the realm of a half-sleep as she turned and saw that they were nearly already caught again. The Enforcers would have them soon if they didn't hide somewhere to seek help.

"Where can we go?" Sef asked quietly, his eyes only opened slightly as he watched the Dark Hand temporarily disappear behind a corner that Jade had just turned. She seemed like she was heading in a certain direction, and she gave him a weak but confident smile.

"There's only one place I can think to go," she said, a twinkle in her eyes Sef recognized as the one he couldn't trust entirely. She seemed uneasy about what she was considering, yet excited at the same moment as well. Wherever it was, he doubted they were supposed to be there under normal circumstances.

"And where would that be?" Sef asked, his eyes shutting again with unwelcome weariness, feeling the throbbing pain still streaking throughout his body as it had earlier.

"A little place known as Section 13," she replied, the twinkle only growing stronger as she spoke.


	7. Zodiac Zealots

** Greetings everyone! I have finally decided to do some review responses, considering that without your support I may not have continued with this story as vehemently as I have thus far.**

** VampireNaomi**: I'm glad that the story has you interested; I've been doing my absolute best to keep it from becoming either dull or overly done, since I've read some fanfiction in the past where the downfall was because of such reasons. Do not worry; the truth about Sef shall be coming out in the next chapter. As for your last review, I attempted to divide the different points-of-view with lines, but the document manager wouldn't allow me to no matter how much I attempted it. Until it lets me do this again, you're on your own to decipher it.

** Souma Kagura**: Ah, another Fruits Basket fan! I'm happy you've read my story and think it's going along well, and I just wanted to say that your fanfic "He is Not a Toy" was downright hilarious! I wish I had the Fruits Basket anime on DVD, but unfortunately I have not yet obtained them. Long live Hatsuharu.

** Avery**: You said in your first review you were a picky fanfiction reader, so I'm glad my story has, at the very least, impressed you a bit. Jackie Chan Adventures is something I only got into recently, but ever since then I've really enjoyed it, especially the antics of Jade. Happy to see you enjoyed it.

**And now, after having listened to my brattle long enough, on to the seventh installment of "Kurayami."**

From where Sef was carried roughly in Jade's arms, the world had become a disorganized jumble of colors and shapes. He could hear her frantic breathing as she attempted to keep them at least ten feet ahead of the Enforcers while still trying to hold him stably, but he still felt far too weak to run on his own though he wished to take the burden from her.

His mind was spinning with both the fading pains of earlier and the questions raging through his mind as to what exactly had caused such agony and power to course through him. It had obviously been instinctive, whatever force it was that had surfaced, for at that moment before it had arisen he had never been more sure he was going to die.

Though he could still vibrantly remember the pain that had come with the strange, extraordinary abilities, he wished they would return to save both him and Jade from being recaptured, but no matter how hard he concentrated, nothing would come.

"Jade, where is this Section 13 you spoke of? We had better arrive there quickly or they're going to get us..." Sef was barely able to murmur, a mere whisper that hardly reached her attention. She looked fiercer than ever, her breathing becoming quickened to match her pace, and Sef awaited an answer even with her obvious focus.

"Section 13 is a government agency centered here in San Francisco, and Jackie and me know a lot of people there. We've helped them out on a lot of occasions," Jade muttered out, relinquishing one of her arms briefly to rub away the sweat as she carried Sef roughly with the other.

"The Enforcers...are catching up," Sef needn't have said as Jade looked back and turned around a moment later, far paler than before. They were but a few yards behind them now, and coming closer.

"Why don't you kids just hand yourselves over quietly? We promise not to hurt you," Finn said as he made a swipe at Jade's sweater collar, but she dodged to the side too quickly for him to grasp it. Sef shivered a bit and nodded weakly.

"Maybe we should, they're going to catch us anyways..." he said quietly, but Jade immediately defied his fears with a violent shake of the head.

"No, I can outrun these guys, and besides we're nearly there," she exclaimed, suddenly lunging for a steel door plastered into the building before them, wrenching her hand swiftly around the handle and thrusting it open.

There was only darkness awaiting them, but before Sef's eyes could even hope to adjust to it, Jade had placed him onto the floor and turned to slam the door shut. Switching a padlock into place, she turned and rested against the door, breathing hard with the effort she had put forth just to get them to this forsaken place.

Sef stood up from the ground, his legs shaking and knees buckling, but before either of them could breathe more than a handful of relieved sighs, the door suddenly was being torn, it seemed, from the rusted hinges that had once protected them. They could hear Hak Foo grunting from his efforts on the other side as he wrenched it from where it had stood.

"Run!" Jade shouted hastily as she rushed forward, grasping his already chaffed wrist and tugging him across the barren metal floor. He turned and watched in the uttermost horror as the door was literally ripped from where it had defiantly stood, and in the light pouring in from the outside they could see the four oppressive figures moving into the room slowly and menacingly, seeing that their prey was cornered as Jade and Sef came face to face with a massive wall before them, blocking any chances of escaping the approaching Enforcers.

"Knock knock," Chow said quietly, humored by their sudden terror as they both huddled next to the walls, seeing their oppressors' shadows towering over their own against the cold walls behind them.

"This would be a good time to summon up whatever power that was you had earlier," Jade muttered fearfully as their aggressors footsteps echoed all around them, the only other sounds but their own labored breaths.

"I can't, I've tried ever since they started pursuing us, but for some reason I believe it will only appear if we are in great danger," Sef murmured back, hoping the Enforcers didn't hear them and increase their progress to keep their hopeless plans from surfacing.

"Well then tell wherever they came from that we're in some serious danger here and need help!" she hissed back a bit too loudly, and immediately the Enforcers all seemed to tense up from the exclamation.

"Is he...gonna set everything on fire again?" Ratso asked as they halted in their approach, and Sef suddenly had an idea as he realized that they were indeed afraid of him.

'Maybe if I can pretend I'm gaining those abilities once more, it'll be enough to frighten them away, if only for a moment so we can escape...' he thought to himself, suddenly taking a meager step forward from where he had been cowering.

He thrust his arms forward in a suddenly robotic fashion and pretended to be horrified himself.

"What's...what's happening? No, not again..." he moaned at the end, thinking he was pulling off the act rather well as the Enforcers suddenly let out quick yelps of terror and sprinted away, and Sef released a fierce scream into the air to give it more effect. As he looked downwards once again from the unseen ceiling, he could see the Enforcers were about to reach the door they had entered through.

"That was awesome," Jade said, realizing his trick immediately, but her proclamation once again drew the unwanted attentions of the Enforcers, who, with her ease, seemed to realize themselves his relapsing abilities were pretentious.

"He's only faking it..." Finn said as he pivoted and began to run again towards them once more, but as Sef stood there frozen Jade wrenched him, via the collar of his vest, towards a once unnoticed doorway to their left.

The Enforcers seemed enraged at having been fooled, and Sef forced himself to run even with the pain still running through his blood as they reached the door and rushed through it, this time unable to secure any padlocks before it was broken through. Jade instead rushed to the wall nearby and thrust a clenched fist into a glass panel on the wall, pushing in an emergency button there.

Immediately alarms and sirens began to go off, and Sef listened as the hum of machinery enveloped the silence all around them. Automatically an enormous door began to lift at the other end of the otherwise empty corridor, and while the Enforcers panicked for a few seconds with the screeching alarms and blaring lights, Jade led Sef into a massive room that did nothing short but spellbind him.

"Jade, your hand is bleeding!" Sef exclaimed, noticing the small streams of blood from having sent her hand through the glass, but she simply shrugged and progressed forward, seemingly ignoring the injury before he had mentioned it.

Secured items were everywhere, protected by various bright force fields as Jade seemed intent on taking him to a single one. He watched as she typed a code feverishly into a small panel outside a particularly thick energy shield, and suddenly it dispersed and she reached forward to seize the stolen treasure.

"We're safe now, we can use _these _to get rid of those jerks," Jade smiled holding forward a handful of the supposed weapons upon a small silken cloth that they had been resting on previously. Sef looked down at them, confused to say the very least.

"How are rocks going to help us?" he asked, picking up one with a rooster and one with a pig inscribed upon them.

"No, wait! You don't know how to use 'em!" Jade shouted a bit too late, for suddenly the Enforcers suddenly reappeared, walking into the room with looks of greed and anger upon their faces.

"Thanks for leading us right into Section 13 kiddies, now give up!" Finn shouted, suddenly giving a swift signal to his comrades, and they were all charging towards them as Sef took a few cowering steps back and gasped.

But before they could even touch them, Sef felt an unnatural energy suddenly building up within his eyes, and just as Finn was about to seize him, a strange fire suddenly beamed from his pupils, sending the near attacker away. Sef was thrown backwards by the blast, knocking into Jade and feeling as his fingers wrapped around one of the other stones she had held. He slammed against the far wall, his body ricocheting off it and plummeting back to the ground. But he opened his eyes to find he was hovering in the air, just inches above the cold ground below.

The stones he held within his hands were glimmering, warm with an unnatural heat as he willed himself back to solid ground, and looked at them with a confused expression. These rocks did have strange powers!

"Where's that stupid dragon?!" Jade exclaimed frantically as she clawed through the large pile of the talismans, finally discovering the one she wanted with a devilish grin. But before she could raise it into the air and use it, her hand was seized by Ratso, who pried the talisman loose from it easily.

"You little kids shouldn't be playing with these," he said with a toothy grin as he held it forwards, threatening her as he tugged her along. She fought but couldn't break his rock solid grasp. Sef, however, suddenly swooped down from the ceiling, seizing up some more of the talismans and sorting through them frantically.

'Which one of these is a weapon? I have to help Jade!' he thought frantically to himself, dropping a few but finally questioning Jade even as she fought for liberation on the ground.

"Jade, which one of these can be used as a weapon?" he asked, and she thought about this for a moment before she answered.

"The Pig talisman allows you to shot heat rays from your eyes like you did just now!" she shouted back up, and Sef found that very same talisman clutched in one hand. He held it up and concentrating on using it profusely.

"Please...please let me use your power to save her..." he murmured, and suddenly he felt the strange, warm but comforting energy suddenly arise from within him, channeling from the talisman through his arm and then into his vision. Suddenly two blasts of heat emitted, one from each eye as he watched through the blinding light in amazement.

The once triumphant Enforcers suddenly ducked to the side, but Jade managed to dodge as well and was freed. She snatched the Dragon talisman once more from Ratso and held it up in the air, smiling at the now cowering Enforcers as she approached in her own menacing stride.

"Oh how the tables have turned," she said in a purposely eerie voice, and Sef smiled and was looking for another helpful talisman when suddenly he found himself paralyzed.

He felt something suddenly tightly grasp his neck, and instinctively he dropped all the talismans to the ground and reached up, frantically attempting to make his newest captor let go. He looked to the ground, counting and seeing that all the Enforcers were down there below so it could not be any of them. He looked up slowly, attempting to face his oppressor even with the inhuman grip on his throat.

"M-Mr. Valmont?" he barely got out, but he looked different from what he remembered of the shrewd businessman. He was wearing strange dark, almost ancient appearing garments, and his eyes gleamed with a demonic crimson gaze. He grinned so evilly at Sef that his blood ran cold, and he froze with the horrified expression on his face. He trembled and felt suddenly utterly helpless.

"Hello there Sef Artaxerxes, so glad you remember me," the being hissed, and Sef cringed and forced a smile on his face to look unafraid.

"The red eyes and possessed voice are new, but I still remember when you accompanied my father and I on that excavation..."

"Silence!" he commanded in a venomously hiss, and Sef immediately did as he told, slapping his hands over his own mouth and screeching with terror. Jade had gotten a safe distance from the Enforcers before they all looked into the air and saw the scene unfolding.

"Hey, the boss is here," Ratso said with a nervous grin, and Valmont suddenly descended slowly to the ground, tucking Sef under his arm like a package. Sef kicked and fought to no avail, Valmont's ironclad grip still around his throat.

"You useless idiots! All four of you couldn't even secure a helpless child, and I was forced to step in after seeing your obvious incompetence!" Valmont hissed, and all of them cowered as Jade suddenly rose her hand, taking aim with the Dragon talisman. But Valmont seemed unafraid, instead grinning in her direction as her hand trembled in attempted accuracy.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you child. If you fire the power of the Dragon talisman then you will kill your little friend as well," Valmont said, suddenly holding up Sef like a human shield and laughing darkly. Sef's eyes begged her to help, but all she could do was gently set the talisman back down with a sigh of defeat. Valmont continued to laugh at their hopeless gazes.

"And now, I'm afraid we have to depart-," Valmont said, suddenly interrupted by the sounds of the doors opposite of them bursting open and admitting in several figures.

"Jackie!" Jade exclaimed, though never leaving her position under where Sef and Valmont hovered.

"Chan!" Valmont hissed loathingly, and Sef smiled as he watched them enter the room. This was the last place he would have expected seeing them emerge.

"You're the only person I know that would pick on children Valmont," Jackie said, suddenly crouching a bit in a fighting position. Valmont growled at him, but instead of fighting himself and risking loosing his grip over Sef, he decided he did not wish to risk loosing his elusive prey.

"While I would love nothing more than to stay and crush your skull Chan, I'm afraid me and your young guest have a bit of chatting to do about that amulet of his," Valmont suddenly hissed, and before anyone could react, Valmont waved his free hand and a strange, shrouding smoke emitted from all around them, leaking from the shadows as Sef watched in horror. Wrapped in the substance, the Enforcers one by one began to disappear.

Sef screamed for help futilely, his cries overshadowed by Valmont's unearthly laughter as the mist enveloped them as well and they vanished from sight as well, and nothing remained by the talismans he had dropped.


	8. Descent into Darkness

"**_Contemplate thy powers, contemplate thy wants and thy connections so shalt thou discover the duties of Life, and be directed in all thy ways." – Egyptian Proverb_**

"No! Sef!" Jade exclaimed, finding only smoke and faint afterimages fading into the air as she charged forth too late too to save him. She simply stared off into the distance, feeling suddenly guilty and horrible for having allowed Sef to be captured. She could still see his horrified sapphire eyes gleaming from the shadows ahead of her, accusing her almost as she looked to the floor to avoid them.

"No...Sef..." she barely muttered again, on her knees and clenching her fists hatefully. She wanted so badly to have Valmont and the Enforcers return so she could punish them for doing this using the discarded talismans, but this hate was quickly smite by her worry for Sef. He had seemed so utterly terrified before he had vanished, his eyes pleading to be liberated from the approaching darkness.

"Jade, are you all right?" Jackie asked worriedly, coming to her side and helping back onto her feet, observing to see if she had sustained any injuries. She brushed off her clothes and hung her head in defeat, sighing in the wake of the same emotion and not bothering to answer his question.

"I let him down Jackie, I couldn't help him when Valmont took him away, and he saved me from the Enforcers...twice in fact," she said sadly, remembering the strange incident that had happened earlier and suddenly turning her attentions towards that. Everything had happened so swiftly just now that she had completely forgotten the supernatural energy that had emitted from him only just a few moments ago.

"Jackie, now I remember! They wanted Sef's amulet, the strange tablet with the eye carved into it that he always wears. When the Enforcers attacked us earlier, Sef got really afraid and started screaming, because Finn was choking him and taking us away, and then suddenly this weird energy came out of him and threw old Finn against a brick building harder than Tohru's fist could have," Jade said, explaining everything so fast that barely anyone understood a thing she said, "And then everything went up into flames! Then he collapsed and I caught him and ran for my life and ended up here, where the Enforcers attacked us again and Valmont appeared out of nowhere."

"You're saying that Sef's amulet has strange abilities? Why didn't he tell us earlier about this?" Jackie asked in response to her hastily recollections, only to receive a stabbing blow to the back of his head in response as Uncle stepped forward. He was grasping a dusty old spell book, his finger wedged into it to mark a certain page.

"Sef did not know of the powers of his amulet before this day, when I aided him in releasing them through a chi spell, though they would have emerged on their own, far worse than they did! I knew he was in danger and knew the energy could protect him, but he failed to wield it properly with his youth and lack of understanding. Come," Uncle said, indicating an empty conference chamber nearby, "Come with Uncle and he shall explain what he has come to discover about young Sef."

He immediately began progressing towards the room, and the others followed along closely, all curious of what he could tell them of a seemingly simple child Sef had appeared to be.

_Sef awoke finally, feeling so disoriented and frightened that his world spun chaotically around him, though it mattered little when all had become darkness. He saw movement and looked towards it instinctively, cringing as he saw Valmont step from the shadows, his eyes now piercing through him with a blood-red hue._

_"Ah Sef, you have finally awakened. You do not sleep so soundly, but I did not wish to awaken you too soon and diminish the power of the amulet," he hissed in an inhuman voice, and Sef attempted to back away only to find a wall behind him. His hands were elevated into the air, his feet rooted to the ground. He heard the sickening noise of metal clanging and clashing and realized he was shackled, his wrists to the wall and ankles to the floor. The chains limited his movement to nearly nothing, and the rust bit into his flesh._

_He immediately began to resist them to no avail, halting when Valmont laughed at his petty efforts, his glimmering eyes only becoming more vibrant with his defeated cringes and sighs. The chains appeared old but would not give way to his feverish lashing._

_"I am sure you are curious as to why you are here, but do not worry. That is why I have appeared to you here and now, to relieve you of some of the no doubt frustrating thoughts coursing through your small mind," he said, beginning to encircle him a bit with a menacing stride, and Sef merely grimaced and growled, though sounding more wounded than aggressive._

_"No need to be hostile, for you wouldn't want to spend your last days in such a miserable mood now would you?" Valmont questioned, and Sef immediately felt his body go rigid with fear, his blood like stone flowing through his veins._

_"What do you mean?" was all he could ask._

"The amulet Sef wears did not come into his possession by accident. That amulet possessed the powers of an ancient Egyptian God, one who happened to have alliances a young Pharaoh that Sef happens to descend from," Uncle said, suddenly opening the page he had been saving and showing them a distinct picture within its pages.

It depicted an eminent God who had the head of a dog and was holding a spear and shield, looking prepared for battle as it stared at them from the pages with lifeless eyes.

"That's the god Anubis isn't it?" Jade estimated, having remembered seeing paintings of the infamous God of Death at museums and at school. But Uncle shook his head immediately to her guess.

"No, this was a god of the city of Lykopolis called Wepwawet, though he is the son of the very same god you have named Jade. Wepwawet was known for having the ability to open the gates of the underworld to allow passage to the fallen souls, mostly those who had died in battle, and admit them to their final resting place," Uncle explained, and everyone listened in silence for the rest of the story behind this.

"The Pharaoh that Sef descended from was a young child when he was placed upon the throne, and immediately challengers and enemies began to attack the kingdom, hoping to steal his power since he was merely a ten-year-old boy at the time he was crowned the ruler of Egypt," Uncle said, turning a few more pages and revealing the picture of the young pharaoh.

"I guess it isn't surprising that he looks exactly like Sef then," Jade muttered, and her statement couldn't have been more correct. It looked exactly like the young boy, except wearing ancient garments and looking utterly stoic in the picture though confronted by an army of potential oppressors nearby.

"The Pharaoh Shen was not willing to bow to the powers of others, and instead sought the help of the minor god Wepwawet in order to banish the evil and murderous men attempting to kill him to the underworld. Wepwawet agreed to help him, but not without a price for the Pharaoh to pay to him as well for the exiles he would perform upon Shen's vile enemies," Uncle continued, and no one challenged the silence as they waited for the story to unfold.

_"So I descend from this Pharaoh, Shen?" Sef asked, listening more to the sound of the oppressive chains than the story itself, as though there was relevance between them, but Valmont simply nodded and smiled at his confusion and dismay, still tugging with all his might to attempt to shatter his bindings though less barbarically with the lack of strength._

_"Yes, and the Pharaoh sealed the deal with the god Wepwawet on one single condition: The Pharaoh had to guarantee him a host in the future to channel his powers through when the ancient beliefs were gone and his powers had diminished, and you, child, are the one that has been bestowed the amulet that possesses the final remnants of that very same ancient deity," Valmont said with a horrible grin, but Sef was still confused as to why Valmont had hunted him down so furiously._

_"So the Pharaoh Shen exchanged my soul for his own safety to Wepwawet, but why have you kidnapped me? What purpose could I possibly have to you?" he questioned next, still baffled from disbelief._

"Wepwawet was the controller of the gates of the Underworld; his father Anubis had entrusted him with the responsibility of watching over the entrance and making sure that souls entered it at the proper times. Now that the amulet has been awakened, Sef will soon find himself able to control such portals and gateways to the realms of the dead," Uncle continued, and Jackie suddenly interjected, curious as to where this was going.

"You knew all this all along Uncle?" he questioned, and Uncle simply nodded, shutting the book and actually looking worried as he continued.

"I knew because when they sent us the potential exchange students I saw the amulet he was wearing and remembered seeing it during some of my studies on Egyptian curses and legends. I connected that to the fact that Valmont had been missing lately, and have theorized he's behind all the factors that led Sef here. Sef's father suddenly falls ill, and then we end up with his picture when we apply for a foreign exchange student. Valmont, or rather Shendu, has been planning this the whole time and has been lying in wait for his arrival since the beginning," Uncle said, and Jade's eyes grew as big as dinner plates.

"You mean Valmont poisoned his father so he'd enter the program? And then made sure we chose him by revealing this to you on purpose? Whoa, he must have really been determined to get Sef here and then kidnap him," she murmured, her mind spinning with these suddenly revelations.

"But why would Valmont go through all these lengths to obtain him master? Sef is a mere child, and besides, only he can wield these strange powers inherited from his ancestor's promise. Valmont can't hope to gain them himself when it requires that specific bloodline, so why has he taken Sef?" Tohru asked suddenly, holding one of the many ingredients they had used earlier to help Sef's powers emerge fully so he could defend himself and watching it shake slightly with fear of the answer.

"Valmont does not wish to take his abilities, but simply use them. He cannot force Sef to do any of his biddings, the boy may be young but his spirit is strong. But with his lack of power and experience over his abilities, Valmont will easily be able to bring forth Wepwawet's most extraordinary power, and it will indirectly bring destruction to the earth," Uncle said, now sounding utterly grave as he spoke, gently setting the book onto the table and looking with a downtrodden look.

No one dared breath, and Augustus spoke next, though his voice was hardly above a concerned whisper.

"Getting to the point of this, what does he want to do with Sef?" he asked quietly, the others asking the same questions themselves.

_"The most powerful ability...what are you talking about? Tell me now, why have you done all this to me simply to hold me hostage? What is this power you want to utilize?" Sef asked, hanging limping from the chains after having surrendered to their restrictions, hanging his throbbing head as Valmont laughed insidiously. The Enforcers were somewhere nearby, listening to all this as well and laughing at Sef's shock and horror at some of the things that Valmont had revealed to him. _

_He simply stepped forward and gripped Sef's chin, forcing him to look his directly in the eyes with a cold and strong grasp. Sef shivered as he attempted to writhe from his grip and could barely seeing anything besides the crimson glow of evil shining brightly within them._

_"It is rather simple. Your ability to open the gates of the underworld will allow a perfect passage for my demon brethren to finally escape their imprisonment."_


	9. Imprisoned with Idiots

Sef shivered, cold from the piercing touch of the shackles woven around his wrists and ankles, and the dank dungeon he was being held within. From what he could decipher, huddled in the darkness utterly alone now, he was in some sort of warehouse, though it had been renovated and fixed up recently from the modern furnishings he noted. Valmont must have using this place as a stronghold for quite some time to have put so much effort into transforming it into a makeshift home.

He struggled profusely against his bindings, writhing and thrashing like a caged animal and letting out savage cries as he only served to wound himself, wringing his wrists to the point where they throbbed and bled slightly from the jagged rust of the shackles. He finally sighed and expelled his inner rage, succumbing to his physical weakness and slumping to the ground in an uncaring heap. He was so very tired from his efforts, and his body was still coursing with the strange pains from earlier. He was surprised they hadn't subsided, considering that time felt so long ago now.

His prison contained but a single window, providing him only natural light of dying sunrays and glimmering starlight from overhead. He heard stirring and voices nearby and knew his captors were near, no doubt developing some sort of horrendous plan involving him and his amulet, and he lowered his futile gaze, unable to think of anything he could do to stop this all from happening.

Valmont, or rather the demon that possessed him, had mentioned the revival of other demons, and this thought only served to cause insuppressible fears. With the lack of allies and strength to provide any opposition against his foes, there was little hope of him being able to resist their efforts to make this occur. He seemed unable to fully grasp the control over Wepwawet's abilities yet, and this made him vulnerable to being at their mercy. If he wasn't careful, people could suffer or die at his hands he knew, and that responsibility only served to make his dark prison all the more darker.

He was feeling rather starved right now, having eaten nothing since his lunch earlier at school, and his throat was unbelievably dry as he found his voice monstrous to speak with, so course it pained him further. He trembled with hunger and fear and cold, wishing more than anything that the double doors standing oppressively before him would burst open and Jade and Jackie and all the others would come through it to rescue him.

Just a moment later they did thrust open, but it merely revealed his five captors approaching. Chained to the wall, all he could do was back against it and stare up with a horrified expression. He wasn't relying on mercy; it had become obvious enough earlier that these men had none it seemed. He was just hoping to delay whatever fate or demise they had concocted, in hopes his rescuers did indeed arrive to save him.

"There's no need to be afraid Sef. You are our honored guest here after all," Valmont laughed softly, materializing another restricting chain around his throat, summoned by a strange dark magic he was able to control. Sef cringed and cried softly, though allowing no tears to fall for their sadistic pleasure.

"Why, why are you doing this to me? What have I ever done to you? If it's the amulet you want you can have it! Just leave me and my father and the Chan's alone..." he said swiftly yet weakly, falling to his knees under the crushing weight of the metal. He felt so foolish, begging for pity this way, and was forced once more to swallow his pride when the Enforcers burst out in laughter of his weakness, almost seeming to bow to their might because of the chains.

"I'm afraid it isn't that simple child. Your amulet possesses great power yes, and if I could utilize it myself I would have simply slain you earlier and taken it, but unfortunately it also requires your unique bloodline in order to control it, so thus I need you as well," Valmont hissed, reaching down and holding the amulet in his hand as he analyzed the simple carving in the alabaster.

Suddenly a strange, amber energy filtered from the simply stone as it had before, and Sef looked down in equal surprise as did everyone else when the energy surged from the amulet and forced Valmont away, the demon sorcerer staggering backwards across the floor as the bright force diminished into darkness once more and Sef stood spellbound.

"Wow..." was all he could whisper as the amulet fell back into place on his chest, though this time something was very different. The amulet was burning hot, and searing against his flesh as he hid the sensation and pretended that the energy had died down once more.

Valmont seemed thoroughly angered by now, noticing the rebellious nature of the amulet a bit too late as he nursed a wounded hand. Sef was surprised to see it was burnt rather severely, scorched by whatever had emitted from the stone, and he could only grin nervously as the leading enemy approached once more.

"Uh...it wasn't me..." he barely got out, but Valmont seemed to find his comment unfunny as he reached forward and gripped his throat, his grasp once more inhuman and crushing his windpipe easily. He dared not scream, knowing that he would only lose more oxygen while making himself look more helpless as well, and could only stare fearfully into Valmont's glimmering red eyes. His confident smirk returned as he watched the boy lash out a bit, attempting to tear his young claws into the flesh of his arm to free himself.

"You may have little control over these abilities, but whether or not you or the spirit of Wepwawet dwelling within you likes it, you are going to help me free my imprisoned brethren, so I suggest you forget any plans of escaping or being rescued. You aren't going anywhere until you have fulfilled my command, that is, if you live through the process necessary to release them," Valmont added with a horrendous laugh, and Sef was freed from his grasp as the leader turned to his awaiting minions, who were all smirking rather immaturely at Sef until he turned to them.

"The four of you guard him and do not allow Chan or any of his allies to take him in case they do arrive in my brief absence. If you fail me _again_ I shall banish you all to your own personal underworld!" he promised, vanishing into a thick and bleak cloud of smoke and disappearing completely from the room.

Sef gulped and pressed against the wall more so than before. He could only imagine how angry they were with him, especially Finn, considering the countless injuries he had given him throughout their pursuits to capture him.

"C'mere you little brat," Finn suddenly said, grasping his collar and wrenching him into the air as best he could even with the restricting bindings. Nope, he hadn't forgotten. "So, you thought it was funny earlier throwing me into a wall with those freaky powers of yours, and then attempting to obliterate all of us using the Pig talisman eh? Maybe I should show you how fun it was for us..." he clenched a low fist, threatening to drive it into Sef's abdomen with one snide comment it seemed. But the boy merely breathed out a defeated sigh, looking to the floor beyond the enraged figure.

"Do whatever you wish to me. It's becoming increasingly obvious that by myself I cannot escape, and that Jackie and the others will not be able to free me with the four of you guarding me," Sef murmured, hanging his head and staring depressingly at the floor. Finn merely laughed softly at this, releasing his fist and instead smoothing his crimson hair with the free hand as he also let go of Sef's collar as well.

"Now that's more like it. Submission is the best policy when there is no hope after all," he said, as though triumphant in Sef's admission of defeat. He seemed unable to look up, instead continuing to stare away from them down at the floor with a monotone expression. The other Enforcers stepped forward as Finn turned back to him, losing interest in his appearance for a moment.

"What, are you gonna cry now or something? I can't blame you if you do, considering you're gonna be freeing seven of Shendu's favorite relatives fairly soon," Chow suddenly laughed, seizing a handful of Sef's long, messy hair and pulling his gaze back up. Sef was indeed crying, two long streams of tears falling down his rosy, stained cheeks as he sobbed slightly and whimpered childishly. His eyes were shut completely however, so tightly they seemed ready to burst with the water retaining behind them.

"Oh, is the poor baby afraid of the big mean old Enforcers already?" Ratso mocked as Sef continued to cry weakly. Hak Foo crossed his massive arms and simply laughed softly and grinned, enjoying his subtle suffering.

"C'mon kid, beg us to let you go. I want to see you try, like you did with Valmont just now. You think any of us are going to let you go, after the attitude and gull you've shown so far? You'll be lucky if we don't finish you off in case the demons don't!" Finn laughed sinisterly, Chow tugging upwards on his hair as he forced his head to stay up even with Sef's weak resistance.

Suddenly Sef opened his eyes, and an energy suddenly formed within them and shot out, surging at and then against the crowded Enforcers, and he watched in amazement as they scattered upon the ground, not injured but severely disoriented since the attack had been weakened by mental repression on his part.

Sef suddenly felt a small weight in the pocket of his vest he hadn't noticed before...a talisman! He must have dropped the Pig talisman into his pocket when Valmont had seized him, and had summoned the heat vision abilities when he had become afraid and hateful just now towards them.

The Enforcers all eventually got back onto their feet, and the first one to reach him against was none other than the towering Hak Foo, who looked ready to bash his brains against the wall.

"Tiger Sharpens Claws for Hunting..." Hak Foo named his action once more, twisting a stiff fist within his other hand as Sef cowered and watched the other Enforcers stand as well and looking ready to kill him.

"All of you stay away! If you aggravate me too much either the talisman or my amulet will lash out against you! I don't have any control over either of them, so if you really want to risk your lives to keep torturing me with your childish mocking and threats, then be my guests!" Sef suddenly lashed out, spitting out the words as though uttering a curse, and the Enforcers actually looked startled for a moment before they considered the relevance of his claim.

Eventually, they all angrily moved to the opposite side of the room, engaging in a card game within moments of silent boredom and staring hatefully at the small figure, who was now perched contently on the ground staring back at them innocently.

"What are you guys playing?" Sef finally got up the courage to ask, noticing that Chow seemed to be winning the majority of the games. He was even now sporting the comb that Finn constantly had used to smooth his own hair in the past, smiling victoriously.

"It's called strip poker kid, you start by betting small things in your pockets and keep going until...well there's nothing left," Finn said, laying down another hand and finding himself defeated again and short one shoe.

"You mean until you're butt naked?" Sef offered, and Chow actually let out a slight laugh as Finn growled and twiddled his toes underneath the stained and ripped sock.

"Yes, that would be a worst case scenario, which I am not getting myself into!" Finn exclaimed at the end in Chow's direction, who was still snickering as he looked at his next hand devilishly. Ratso and Hak Foo had little idea of what they were doing though they participated in the game, though doing better than Finn, who seemed to be the constant victim of Chow's seeming endless good hands.

Sef watched for a few more minutes, seeing the way they argued and laughed and actually seemed to get along rather well. He had almost envisioned them as being heartless beasts like the demon Shendu was, but they seemed little more than petty, somewhat childish thieves now that he observed them closely. He believed that their actions just a few moments before had been motivated by revenge, and he honestly couldn't blame them considering the forces of his amulet and the numerous talismans they had threatened them with. He'd probably bruised their precious egos with his immense and strange abilities, not to mention having gotten then in trouble with their boss a handful of times no doubt, and the weak area of any person is their pride.

"Ummm...I..." Sef finally managed to say, watching as they all slowly turned or looked up towards him. Finn had already lost his jacket and both shoes, now just wearing a simple undershirt, pants, and socks and looking rather angry about it, especially with the constant drafts that filtered into the warehouse.

"I just wanted to say...that I'm sorry about what happened earlier, with my powers that is. I never wanted to hurt anyone to be honest, even with your intentions, and considering now what they could have done...I'm just sorry," he said weakly, hanging his head once more and expecting them to laugh at this utterly pitiful excuse for an apology. But none of them spoke for another moment, and he could feel their stares bearing down on them as they continued to watch, seeing he was sincere in his claim.

"Ah, think nothing of it. Keep in mind we serve the almighty Shendu and have to face his wrath everyday, so yours looks kinda scrawny compared to getting his dose of rage we get every waking day," Finn muttered as he played another hand and, unsurprising, lost his undershirt with a loud growl into the darkness above.

"Listen, this is gonna sound like a weird request considering I'm your prisoner and I'm currently chained to the wall, but would it be all right if I played cards too? As a sort of last request since Shendu will probably finish me off anyways like you said?" Sef asked with an innocent smile, and the four Enforcers considered it for a moment, and all four members responded with a unified shrug, shifting over so he could play within the limited area he was allowed.

"The name of the game is strip poker," Finn announced as they continued where the last one had left off, redistributing the cards so Sef could get in on the game now.

"Go easy on me guys, I've never played this game before," Sef said with a happy grin, holding the cards securely near himself, and they all grinned cunningly, thinking he would be a pushover as a complete rookie to the game.

And yet within ten minutes they all sat in their underwear and socks, Sef surrounded by a large pile of their various items and clothing as he sifted through his cards in an amateurish fashion and then placed them down before them.

"Look, all Kings and Queens and other royalty members," he grinned cheerfully, presenting a royal flush, and they all blushed and threw down their cards, grimacing as they realized the extent of what they had lost.

"Just take back your clothes and we'll pretend this embarrassing moment never happened," Sef laughed as he tossed their clothes in different directions, continuing to giggle as they snatched up all their garments and changed back into them swiftly, though still looking disgruntled they had been beaten that many times by a small child who had never played the game even once before.

Sef smiled, surprising genuinely, having actually had a bit of fun somehow wiping the floor with them and watching their casual and frustrated reactions to his incredible luck.

'You know, I may be imprisoned with idiots, but at least they're not blood-thirsty demons like the ones I have a bad feeling I'm gonna be meeting shortly...'


	10. Operation: Save Sef

**Author's (Never Brief) Note: **I'm taking your advice VampireNaomi and I'll make to distinguish between when Valmont and Shendu are speaking. Just about everything he said in earlier chapters was Shendu speaking through him, considering when he's normal he's not quite so evil or dark, and it'll probably remain that way since Valmont usually has a pretty low resistance level. Hope this slight change helps you enjoy the story a bit more. Oh, and to answer your question MonRan20, this is before the events regarding Dao Long Wong, though he will appear within this fanfic a bit later.

"What do you mean he's going to use Sef to release his demon brothers and sisters?" Jade exclaimed, nearly falling backwards from the chair she had been seated upon if Jackie hadn't caught her halfway to the floor. Tohru was stirring something that Uncle had instructed him to, and the smell of the potion was thick and disgusting, smelling like something that had died and was rotting away. Uncle had claimed it was the chameleon eyes that did this, and there was a general cringe throughout the entire group. Uncle readjusted his glasses, his skin pale and his voice grave as he continued.

"Sef has inherited the powers of Wepwawet as I have just explained, and thusly he is able to open the portals into the underworld just as the ancient god himself did. If Shendu somehow forces him to do so, a rift in the demon world will be severed and his demon brethren will be allowed to escape," Uncle said, and Jade's mouth looked ready to drop to the floor. Everyone else looked just as surprised, not a blink or breath from any of them as they stared in utter shock.

"It's bad enough having just Shendu here, let alone all the rest of them at once," Jade said, rubbing her forehead as a throbbing headache surfaced with this predicament. A simple welcoming to a foreign guest could only go this array within their household. Outside the winds picked up, and they detected the distant rumblings of a storm, as though nature already knew of what was to come.

"Uncle, do you know of any way that we can quickly find Shendu and the Enforcers before this is allowed to happen?" Jackie asked, and he immediately, as always, received a swift and painful blow to the base of his head, and he cringed and rubbed it instinctively, having grown very used to these constant unjustified punishments. A constant bump in his skin was still there, having once been healing from the last hit he had somehow earned.

"If Uncle knew how to, do you think Uncle would be still talking to you now? We must locate Sef as soon as possible and liberate him, or else his soul will surely be devoured either into the demon realm or by the very demons he is forced to set free," Uncle said, his voice so dark it made Jade shiver and scratch her elbows nervously.

"I can't let that happen to Sef. We're friends after all, and any friend of mine is just like a family member to me," Jade declared, leaping from the chair and attempting to look brave though she was shaking fearfully. The roaring thunder as she spoke didn't help either.

"We will not allow him to be hurt Jade," Jackie said, glaring briefly at Uncle for having mentioned such a fate, no matter how possible it was, "But you must remain here Jade. With the threat of all those demons I can't allow you to put yourself in danger, and I'm sure Sef wouldn't want you to either as well."

"But Jackie! Sef is probably the best friend I've ever had! He actually believed all my stories right off the bat, and he's been really nice to me too. I'm not going to just sit here and wait for you to come and tell me it's too late..." she broke off, looking saddened as some rather horrific images flashed across her mind, and she sulked as everyone remained silent.

"Jackie, allow Jade to go with us," Uncle suddenly declared, and Jade's once solemn expression brightened up once more with his support, though Jackie was looking rather helpless to argue right about then.

"But Uncle..."

"Jackie, Sef is Jade's friend, and Uncle believes that this time her motives are pure and should be utilized. But Jade," Uncle said, turning down to her as she continued to beam at him happily, "If things become dangerous, we will not hesitate to send you away for your own protection."

"I understand Uncle, and I promise I'll do whatever I can to help!" she proclaimed instantly, suddenly looking far happier than she had before and looking ready to charge into battle. Jackie simply sighed, knowing that any argument he provided would only win him another sharp slap to the head.

"So what do we need to get? Some spy gear, some rope, and a couple grenades?" Jade said, running all around the room feverishly in search of anything useful. Everyone else sighed, knowing that this was what they were bringing along. They'd be lucky if _they_ came back alive.

"C'mon people, times a wastin' and we don't have a lot of time to work with considering he's being held by Shendu!" Jade exclaimed, and that set everyone into motion, and she smiled with a satisfied expression.

"Operation: Save Sef is underway! Don't worry buddy, we're coming to getcha," she said, putting on a military helmet and marching off after the others, making sure they actually were getting whatever they needed as fast as humanly possible.

Valmont, or rather, Shendu didn't seem happy as he stomped all across the once silent warehouse, the Enforcers standing nearby in case they were needed but looking horrified of his wrath. Sef was half-asleep, having already spent all his fears and simply hoping to rejuvenate himself at this point for whatever was to come. Sef swore he saw smoke emitting from Valmont's ears as Shendu raged, his voice echoing from the walls with a ferocity none of the Enforcers dared challenge or strengthen by accident.

"I cannot believe this! I have just calculated the precise location needed to open the portal this night in order to open the underworld and it is in the heart of the city! I cannot simply perform the necessary rituals and chi spells in front of so many people without arising any suspicions!" Shendu spewed venomously, casting horrendous gazes at the Enforcers though they said and did nothing out of line, and instead cowered whenever he did look in their direction. Sef did all he could to keep from laughing at their rigid and utterly nervous expressions, considering the lackadaisical attitudes they had had earlier.

"Well, what are the four of you standing there staring for? Help me find some sort of solution to this predicament!" he hissed, and they all took a systematic step back as though expecting him to erupt. By the way he was acting right now, everyone else within the room was quite surprised he hadn't yet. But before any of them could speak or voice any potential solutions, Sef said something weakly in his partially delusional state. The Enforcers all let out a unified gulp as he spoke.

"You could just give up this strange and obviously failed scheme of yours _and let me go_," he said with a weak smile, as though he found something humorous about this entire situation. And in fact he did; Shendu had gone through such lengths to possess him and now his plans were all going down the drain before his very eyes. Sef couldn't be any happier about this. If he was going to die at the demon's hands, at least he would know he hadn't been used for evil purposes.

But his feelings changed when the demon suddenly walked slowly towards him, a murderous expression appearing over his once simply angry expression, and Sef gulped and backed against the wall once more, though never taking his eyes from the hideous stare directed towards him. His stomach dropped, and his heart was catapulted into a void he himself had created by making those comments. He had condemned himself to whatever fate Shendu was preparing to carry out.

Shendu reached forward and grasp his neck, pressing it hard against the cold plaster wall behind him with such a force that Sef believed his spine was snapping. His sharp fingernails bit into the flesh of his throat, and his attempts to cry out were all in plain gain. His airway was clasped shut, and he as he gasped for any breath at all a sadistic smirk came across Valmont's face, as though he was thoroughly enjoying Sef's suffering. The Enforcers looked disgusted by these actions but were unable to say or do anything, too afraid of the rage that would be taken against them if they dared defy Shendu.

"You seemed to have so much to say just a while ago Sef; must I constantly punish you for your defiance? If you would simply comply and keep your mouth shut then I wouldn't be forced to harm you in this way," Shendu whispered darkly, and Sef simply growled in an almost inhuman manner and then sunk his teeth into Valmont's hand with all his strength, and he recoiled with a deafening screech, looking at his bleeding hand as the substance spilt upon the floor. Sef was horrified by the sight of blood and closed his eyes, shivering as a sudden cold came over the room. But he chose this moment of vulnerability to at least lash out, if nothing else could come of it.

"Keep your filthy hands off of me demon," he said, his voice suddenly not his own. He gasped and attempted to actually recoil from himself. Something was indefinitely wrong, that voice had truly not been his. It had sounded older and far more frightening than his own, with a strange darkness about it that Sef knew he would never trust. And he hadn't chosen the words he had just spoken; they seemed to have emerged by instinct, or perhaps another force from within himself. He could barely even whisper to the unseen presence before his fears began to drive the force away. He listened for a response from within himself but recieved no such verification, only silence following his strangled murmur.

"We..._Wepwawet_?"

Shendu seemed to have taken notice to, for he didn't immediately counter his resistance and instead stood there, and Sef realized what he was looking at. His amulet was once again glowing, though this time it was a simple glimmer of strange crimson light, unlike the energy he had felt before. There was something indefinitely evil stirring within it now. Sef knew this with every fiber of his quivering little being.

"So, it seems the spirit of your amulet has something against my methods of persuasion and my uses for the _both_ of you," Shendu said, stepping forward once more as Sef took a step back at the same instant, the energy dying down from sight and within himself, though mentally he begged it not to leave him here. "It's just too bad neither he nor you have any say in the fate that is about to befall you. I don't care if anyone sees what I must commence in order to create the needed rift into the underworld," he said, suddenly using a simple wave of his hand to cause the shackles to vanish, but before Sef could run for his life, the possessed human suddenly gripped his upper arm with the same inhuman grasp as before, and all he could do was stare with a terrified expression back up at Shendu, who was grinning so evilly now he couldn't move or ever breath. His red eyes penetrated his soul and seemed to be tearing it apart though it was still within him.

"Because by the time the humans have realized what is happening, my brothers and sisters and I will have already enslaved your entire pitiful world. Now let us be going; we don't want to be late for the opening ceremony do we?"


	11. The Underworld Awaits

The street was crowded with people, unsuspecting of the seemingly innocent pair of beings walking down it solemnly. From what any of them could see, Valmont looked simply like a relative of Sef's taking him somewhere, though gripping his arm in a slightly oppressive manner. But the child didn't cry out or attempt to draw the attention of any passerby that may be able to aid him. The gleaming dagger that Valmont had concealed within the pocket of his suit had silenced him effectively.

The Enforcers followed a distance behind, Shendu aware that having them loom behind himself and Sef would indeed attract more attention than he wanted. Sef simply looked solemnly to the ground, trailing along slowly and feeling like a dog being tugged on a leash with the Valmont would simply pull his across the deep puddles in the street and through the crowds. He was elbowed more than once in the face by uncaring pedestrians, unable to muster the strength to mumble another curse about his height.

Suddenly Valmont was knocked into by an elderly man who was laboring to carry a crate of sodas by, looking apologetic as Shendu's presence looked like he was going to tear the man to shreds. Sef gulped and hoped he wouldn't attempt anything so rash as he stood solemnly to the side of his captor. He kept his downtrodden gaze in tact, only looking up to assure himself that Valmont's eyes had not once again begun to gleam that poisonous crimson hue once more.

"Sorry about that, these old eyes can't see much of anything any more. Well, hello there little fella," the old man said, bending down to pat Sef's head, and he lifted his gaze instinctively with the sudden awareness that his presence was being accounted for. From over where the man was standing over him, he could see Valmont staring down angrily, his eyes flashing red as he warned Sef to keep quiet.

"Your son sure doesn't look a whole lot like ya, that's fer sure. Here ya go little guy," the man said, reaching into the crate and presenting him a bottle of soda, "You're looking a little warm. This'll cool ya off."

Sef took the small present and felt Valmont suddenly tugging him along like a burden once more, who turned back and established a more disciplined presence as he spoke to the old man, who was looking slightly worried about the frightened expression that Sef had worn.

"Thank you very much for you gift for my dear son, now we must be going," Valmont said, patting his head so hard Sef cringed and was nearly knocked to the ground, and the old man simply smiled back and turned to leave, though his grin had shown some nervousness. Shendu's skills to act more human obviously weren't the best.

"You are not to make eye contact with anyone. If even a single hint of what is going on comes from you, even if you don't speak of it, I won't hesitate to make you pay for your insolence," He said, flashing the ominous weapon as Sef whimpered and cowered once more obediently. Sef was actually feeling more disgusted about the fact that Shendu had had the nerve to proclaim himself his father, if only to disguise his presence. It made the hair rise on the back of his head, and his entire being wouldn't stop trembling.

"Maybe if you allowed me to act somewhat cheerful people wouldn't stare at us like you've abducted me which, what do you know? You actually have..." Sef whispered back, suddenly agitated with the mistreatment he was suffering, but he paid for his comment when, the moment they entered an abandoned street devoid of people, a small gash formed on his left cheek, seeming to have appeared out of no where.

"I will hear no more of your brattle child! If you speak again..." he hissed, holding the open blade in his hand, his eyes glowing so fiercely that Sef made sure he obeyed his command. Swallowing his pride was not an easy thing to do, but in this situation, it was either he kept his mouth shut, or that dagger would cut more than a small laceration.

The Enforcers had caught themselves up by now, no longer in danger of catching the wary eye of anyone else, and Valmont did not hesitate to nearly wrench his arm out of his socket as he was forced down the deserted street, nearly tripping over his undone shoelaces many times and receiving threatening glares from Shendu when he did.

The Enforcers had said little of anything since they had begun their journey through the city to wherever the rift was to be formed, and they actually looked rather solemn compared to the ferocity they had unleashed before when provoked. Sef noticed this immediately and decided to attempt to plead with them. At least they were human, and seeing the terror they had displayed earlier, they could probably relate to his fears of Shendu.

"Please you guys, you have to help me escape," he begun in a weak whisper, noticing it had not caught Shendu's attention, but it had the Enforcers. They looked up from their subdued gazes at the ground, all except for Hak Foo, who kept staring straight ahead with an apathetic expression as he had been since they had departed, uncaring of his pleads. "You guys can't just let him do this to me."

His innocent expression seemed to at least weight of their conscious a little, for after he had said this Finn suddenly spoke, but his question was directed towards a rather annoyed Shendu.

"Hey boss, what's gonna happen to the kid during this ceremony thing to release your relatives anyways?" Finn asked quietly, and Valmont's head whipped around but he didn't seem all that angered, merely disliking the distraction from his concentration on finding the appropriate location.

With this simple inquisition however, a horrible grin surfaced across his features within a moment, and Sef gasped and shivered a bit, already knowing his fate was going to be just as terrifying as that gaze.

"I'm glad you asked Finn. The child will more than likely not survive the procedure, considering he is the one who will have to awaken the gates into the demon world and then open them. You see, mortal flesh cannot stand the hellish flames of the underworld for long, and he will be exposed to the full force of the realm in order to open it..." he said, his expression falling down upon Sef who was now weeping slightly out of pure terror, turning his face back towards the Enforcers and openly begging this time.

"Please, if you cannot do this for me then do it for yourselves! Think about it, do you truly believe that Shendu and his demon clan will spare you once they are freed? They may simply devour you the instant they are released!" he shouted, and the Enforcers all seemed to envision this as their faces distorted into grimaces that would have made Sef laugh normally if not for the fact that death seemed to be looming ever so near.

Shendu's grasp became so incredibly fierce that Sef let out a wounded cry and slumped to his knees on the neglected street beneath his feet, and the Enforcers seemed to still be contemplating his words seriously when Shendu intervened, letting out a venomous hiss in their direction.

"You fools, you would believe the word of an ignorant child over mine? You shall all be spared the wrath of all demons if you help me to carry out the ritual in order to free them. This child," he said, suddenly lifting Sef off the ground entirely and holding him by his injured arm into the air; Sef barely able to breath with the amount of pain flowing through him, "Is nothing more than an expendable variable in my plans. Do not concern yourselves with these trifle pleadings; no one will miss him when he is gone."

"What about Chan?" Ratso suddenly asked, recalling the many times the archeologist had interrupted schemes of theirs in the past, and Shendu cringed at the sound of that name, letting out an animalistic growl as the Enforcers retreated several feet away instinctively.

"Chan is not involved in this, and I shall not allow him to be! If we conduct the necessary tasks before he even becomes wary as to where we are, then we shall have my brethren freed before it strikes midnight. Come, it is already beginning to grow dark, and we cannot keep my brothers and sisters waiting," Shendu said, and with a defeated sigh the Enforcers once again followed, this time no longer able to even make eye contact with Sef at the betrayal they had just committed.

In all honestly, Sef couldn't have blamed them. Nearly all people value their own life over all others, especially with a strange child that, like Shendu had said, nobody would ever miss for long. By the time his father even discovered that he had gone missing, Egypt would be consumed by the plagues of demons and cast into oblivion as Shendu had already condemned the entire world to with his scheming.

Suddenly Sef heard an abundance of noise approaching, and looking up to see the scene unfolding just as Shendu cursed lightly under his anxious breath. A parade was forming down the main street to celebrate the first days of autumn as it did every year in the bustling city, and a smile, however slight it was, came over Sef's face.

"That's rather disheartening. Jade and I have been practicing for the last few days to dance in the New Year's parade and now I'm never going to," Sef sighed, watching as the colorful flouts and enormous balloon shapes touched the sky overhead.

"I think that should be the least of your worries kid," Chow said from behind him, and Sef nodded sadly and shoved his free hand into his pocket, wincing with the throbbing emitting from his now sprained elbow joint that Shendu had ruthless suspended him by.

But something about this situation unnerved Sef. Shendu had seemed so worried about anyone seeing them earlier with where the ceremony was going to take place, and yet right now he seemed actually happy about the crowded streets. He flashed Sef a cunning smirk that both confused and startled him at the same instant.

"It is perfect isn't it? You see the ritual must be held atop that building right there, where it is said that the demon energy will peak this very night according to my calculations. But with all eyes drawn to these childish demonstrations, no one will ever know until it is too late. And even if they do happen to see us, they shall probably just assume it is part of the celebration. Did you know that in many cultures children were sacrificed to keep earthly demons from attacking their villages? Consider yourself the opposite of that and merely accept your fate Sef," Shendu laughed, pulling Sef into the midst of the crowd and towards the building he had just indicated.

Sef looked into the air over the unused structure, noticing the far darker hue of the sky over it without a bit of surprise.

'Please Jackie, Jade...someone _please help me_...'

"C'mon Jackie! If we don't move any faster then who knows what they'll have done to Sef by the time we get there!" Jade said, leading their small band down the streets, shoving past the thickening crowds as the parade intensified with the live entertainment that passed them by.

"Uncle, has the chi spell been able to locate where Sef could be right now?" Jackie asked quietly back to the elderly chi master, who was still muttering softly over a boiling concoction, his fingers twitching in a strange way as he continued to speak the spell and completely ignored the question.

"Master said that it should be able to provide some sort of sign as to where Shendu is planning on taking Sef by revealing the gathering darkness. We must simply continue to look for wherever it could be," Tohru said, once again left with the burden of carrying around Uncle's 'essential' materials. Augustus loomed near the back of the group, looking for any traces of the Sef and his kidnappers within the concealing crowd, scratching his head in the uttermost confusion.

"How can we be sure they are even in this part of the city? They could be just about anywhere by now given the time Valmont was allowed due to our planning," Augustus said, finding it a bit difficult to pinpoint if the boy was even in the surrounding group with only a verbal description from the others to go by. Every time he saw a small boy with black hair he seemed prepared to lunge at whomever was guiding them, feeling rather embarrassed when it was a young mother leading them gently along.

"All of you must keep quiet! Uncle must concentrate in order to make sure the sign is pronounced for us to see it!" Uncle declared suddenly, readjusting his spectacles by pushing up on the tilting centerpiece and then resuming the chi spell with unfaltering accuracy. Everyone's eyes went to the sky as they searched feverishly for the subtle point where Sef's life would hang in the balance.

Jade had never felt so helpless before, even when she found herself cornered by the forces of darkness. She had experienced such things before thanks to the artifacts Jackie usually ended up with, but Sef had little or no idea what to do or think. She could only imagine how utterly horrified he had to be, in a strange country with his life in danger, and all to open a portal into the demon world to free some terrible creatures from their rightful places.

But she couldn't let that happen...she just couldn't. Sef had trusted her right away unlike anyone else, and if something ever happened to him, she knew she would never be able to forgive herself for having not done something more. Her sharp and slightly angered eyes watched the sky for any trace of the marker being summoned.

'Please, let the spell work soon. If we don't find him then...' her thoughts trailed off as she noticed something ominous in the sky, materializing over a building a block ahead of where they stood. It was an empty but steadily growing oblivion, almost seeming to segment the sky as her face broke into a smile once again with the rather frightening sight.

"There it is, the sign that Uncle was talking about!" she said, pointing up towards the void, and all eyes feel upon it and there was a brief collected sigh of relief throughout their small group.

"Come, we don't have much time. Every second we waste staying here is another that we could be utilizing to save Sef," Jackie immediately said, suddenly forcing his way somewhat impolitely through the masses as the others followed along in his steady wake.

"Don't worry Sef, we're almost there!" Jade shouted, receiving baffled expressions from many of the people around them but too concerned to care.


	12. The Severance Begins

The crowd was intensifying at the same moments as the parade itself did, the masses thickening at the same instant that they needed to reach Sef desperately. With the more elaborate and colorful floats that came, more people rushed from their homes and the nearby parks to get a glimpse of the sight, each time making a dent in their progress to reach their captured friend. Jade lashed out at many people they passed, attempting to make their way through as quickly as possible though it was becoming more and more of a challenge to do so.

They had barely even managed to move from where they had stood before; even Tohru with his massive size was unable to capture anyone's attentions so they could part the way for them. Jade had thought about yelling "Fire!" and having everyone panic and flee, but Jackie said that that would just cause more chaos and confusion to occur. Crossing her arms stubbornly, she asked him in a begrudged tone if _he_ had any bright ideas.

Jackie thought about this for a moment, unable to comprehend how they would make it to the building in time with the immense crowd all down the sidewalks. The darkness that had formed from Uncle's chi spell was beginning to dissipate, which signaled the true evil forces themselves were only becoming stronger. They had to get there, _now._

Suddenly he had an idea, though it would likely get them into serious trouble and put them in danger of being crushed on the way there. But there seemed no other option with time weighing heavily against them.

"We must go across the street and through the parade! We will have to eventually to reach the building and it will be quicker since there are fewer people on the other side!" Jackie shouted back to the straggling band of rescuers, and before any of them could agree or argue, Jackie suddenly shoved his way through the gathered people and stumbled out onto the bare street, where he let out an instant scream of surprise and dodged to the side as an enormous float nearly trampled him. Hesitantly the others followed, discouraged after Jackie's almost immediate blunder and attempting to keep up with him while not get squashed in the process.

Tohru reached down and picked Jade up off the ground, setting her up onto his shoulder to keep her out of danger's way. He could sustain a hit far more than she could, but all she could do right now was continue to stare ahead where he friend was still captive, probably fearing for his life or perhaps even dying.

"We have to hurry! Uncle's manifestation spell has already worn off!" Jade shouted, and indeed their one sign of Sef's whereabouts was gone entirely, having disappeared into the lesser darkness of the night sky appearing above. As she reached into her pocket searching for the miniature set of binoculars that she owned, she felt her hand hit something cold and hard. Extruding the object from her pocket, she stared at it with a fascinated and surprised gaze for a bewildered moment and then shoved it back into her vest pocket, now more determined than ever to get to Sef.

Jackie finally made it to the other side, nursing a large bruise that he had sustained from the Miss San Francisco float as well as several pink artificial flowers clinging to his hair that had rained down upon him. Uncle managed to make it across in one piece, mostly thanks to Augustus, who pulled him out of the path of more than one float or oncoming vehicle even with the old man's constant complaints that he didn't need help. Tohru set Jade onto the opposite sidewalk and stepped up, and the people were forced to move aside in order to accommodate for his size.

"It's only a few buildings ahead! C'mon Jackie!" Jade said, digging her nails into the skin of his wrist as she grabbed him hastily and dragged him towards the ritual site. Already she could feel a change in the world around them, the eclipse of the two realms beginning as Shendu interfered with the usual process. She continued to stare up into the air, hoping for any sign, any sign at all, that they weren't too late in trying to save him from Shendu's horrible scheme.

"Sef! Sef!" she instinctively began to yell as they approached the appropriate structure, never taking her eyes off the ominous roof overhead and listening for any sign of his presence. If only she could see where he was, she now knew there was something she could do to help him.

"Ah, the precise location where this mortal realm begins to merge with the demon world. Except this time, you'll guarantee that it opens entirely to allow my siblings passage," Shendu hissed with a vicious laugh, pulling Sef along as they reached the top of the unused building. Sef looked ahead and saw the small cubicle of the building that surfaced from the flat span of the roof, a semicircle of strange markings burning into the plaster of the walls. He shuddered and attempted to pull free only to be thrown ahead, landing roughly upon the ground with a muffled yelp.

"Stop your resistance you ignorant child! There isn't any escaping now; I am far too close to finally breaking the seal into the demon realm to allow you to evade my grasp!" Shendu hissed, delivering a crushing blow to Sef's stomach that left him writhing on the ground, whimpering and moaning in pain as the Enforcers slowly followed onto the roof, looking worried as they saw Sef fall to the ground and Shendu simply walk by his shivering being as he turned sharply towards them.

"Make sure he doesn't get away while I perform the beginning stages of the ceremony!" he commanded in a dark scowl, and they all gulped and automatically nodded, gathering around Sef as he continued to lay upon the ground in defeat, cringing with his initial efforts to stand once again only to face the suffering of his freshest wound.

"Listen kid, you'd be better off not fighting this. I mean...it's not like we can do anything anyway! Shendu would have all our heads if we spoke out against him or tried to get you away...and we still wouldn't be able to do you any good..." Finn started, looking sincerely sorry that they were standing by watching all this happen without attempting to halt it, but Sef only smiled faintly up at them, grasping his throbbing abdomen in a self-embrace. His slight grin looked strange mingled with the twisted expression of pain veiled over his expressions, but he managed to speak even with his weak and shaky voice.

"I...I understand...you are right, there's no reason for any of you to get hurt or killed as well. If I die though...can you tell Jade no matter what actually happens to me that I died painlessly. I don't want her to know I suffered...it will only prolong her own..." Sef murmured, turning onto his back and feeling the oppressive forces of darkness crawling up from the earth beneath him, aroused by the incessant incantations that even now Shendu was whispering into the fateful winds, gesturing with his conjuring hands in unbroken accuracy.

Finn's face looked far more guilty as he said this, and all he could do was nod gently, if only to bring Sef some peace right before this potentially fatal ritual was to be performed, and he nodded slightly and continued to stare into the air, as though willing himself to prepare for what was to come.

Suddenly the rhythmic chanting halted, and an uneasy silence fell over everything, even the crowds below. It was almost as though time itself were being altered, slowed so the ceremony could be done with precision. Shendu slowly turned to face, signaling for the Enforcers to bring Sef forwards. They began to do so, though taking as much time as they could to reach the impatient demon.

"Hurry up you idiots, or else the conditions needed for the ceremony will vanish and my efforts will have been in vain!" he hissed, and they picked up their pace a bit, though hardly even slightly, and Sef grinned in thanks for their attempts to at least put off his ultimate fate, if only by a moment or so.

Finally they reached where Shendu was waiting, now looking through an ancient text for the proper way to go about this horrific procedure, and Sef could only stare up in the uttermost fear as they placed him upon the ground and he staggered a bit from his lingering pain. His hair was a mess and strewn over his face, blocking out parts of the scene unfolding and mixing with the disorientation that was slowly enveloping him like a suffocating cocoon.

He turned his head gently to the side, facing the nearest Enforcer, Finn, who was continuing to look fearful and guilty about this entire situation. Sef's half-smile reappeared on his face as the young man turned to face him.

"You probably shouldn't be looking so happy kid..." Finn said weakly and a touch sadly, watching as the markings inscribed upon the walls began to glow a blood red color with each consistent word that Shendu uttered, but Sef merely laughed softly, barely more than a whisper of sound.

"I want to apologize in advance for this," Sef suddenly said, and Finn looked down now confused towards him.

"Apologize for what?"

Sef responded by driving his elbow into Finn's stomach with a surprisingly crushing force for someone his size, and before they could blink he was sprinting towards the fire escape, seeing the top of a steel ladder leading down the ground extruding over the edge of the roof.

"Get him you fools! Do not allow him to get away or I shall cast you into the depths of your own personal underworlds!" Shendu spat so murderously it served to slow Sef down a bit, but he progressed forward no matter how relentless his fears tried to tell him is was useless and he should just turn back. His escape was nearing, and he reached out with both futile hands for the beginning to the ladder, never turning back to see how close the Enforcers were to repossessing him.

He grasped the railing the of fire escape, preparing to lunge himself down it when he brought his feet up to the small barrier around the roof, and looked down to see the fire escape had been removed, pried from the walls of the building and only jagged pieces of rust left behind. His feet hit formless air and he yelped and quickly brought himself back onto the roof with the swift backwards kick.

He gasped and pulled back slightly from having nearly plummeted all the way to the pavement below. He felt the remaining pieces of the railings caving in underneath his grasp and weight, when suddenly from the ground he saw two chestnut eyes staring up at him as he was suddenly grasped by the Enforcers, two eyes he knew he could never forget within a thousand years.

"Jade!" he shouted, a high-pitched cry of terror as she stared up and responded immediately, the others joining her at the base of the building.

"Sef!" she shouted back, and he saw her toss something into the air in his direction, aiming with amazing skill as he held out one hand to catch it, prying it from Chow's hands as the Enforcers attempted to drag him back onto the roof and away from the ledge. His hand clasped around the cold object, but he before he could even register what was happening he was back onto the roof being yanked across its smooth surface, listening as Jade shouted from the ground.

"Sef! Let him go you morons!" she shouted, and Sef actually grinned slightly at her ridicule, dropping the item she had thrown to his in his vest pocket instinctively as he was brought before Shendu, who looked too anxious to get the ceremony commenced and completed to be bothered by Jackie Chan's presence or Sef's attempt to escape. Finn was still crouched on the ground rubbing where Sef had bruised his stomach, though not looking particularly angry that the boy had lashed out in order to try and escape.

"Place him against the wall where the portal is forming, in the _direct_ center of the semicircle," he instructed, and the Enforcers complied slowly, pressing him against the crumbling and cold plaster wall as the inscriptions only served to glow immensely now, illuminating the atmosphere around him as they backed away in awe and terror, though still not making complete contact with the surface.

Sef reached into his breast pocket swiftly, wishing to see what Jade had presented him before he perished. He opened his clasped hands and saw a talisman shimmering against his flesh, though in the coming darkness of the night he was unable to see what animal was carved into its mystical surface. He gently placed it back into the pocket and leaned back against the wall as Shendu ordered him to, the gentlest of smiles appearing upon his defeated expression as he obeyed.

"I trust you Jade..." he murmured, staring off into the distance as suddenly the light erupted into a unholy oblivion as his being was forced against the weak point between the realms, and he felt himself being restrained by shackles of darkness that protruded from the manifesting realm behind him, yanking him against the searing hot surface with a shattering force as his scream disappeared into the forming void. The coming demon world was beginning its awakening onto this earth.

Shendu stood before him, his own eyes glimmering with the same hue that blended with the gateway forming behind Sef's convulsing being.

"And thus, the severance begins..."


	13. From the Ceaseless Oblivion

Sef just wanted to die and have all the pain end. The flames surfacing from behind him were so warm that they scorched his flesh like hellfire just as Shendu had said it would. After a moment of writhing in the wake of this cornucopia of searing agony, he finally was beyond the point of screaming and simply hung lifeless against the pull of the unseen shackles that bound him to the merging point. He no longer even had the strength hold his head up to face the bloodthirsty demon, the only movement surfacing from his nearly lifeless body being the tears that involuntarily poured from his eyes.

He could hear that horrible demon laughing, laughing because soon enough these other demons he had spoken of would be liberated and free to bring whatever destruction they wished to upon the earth, and laughing because Sef could no longer even resist the process. His body had come too severed and weakened for him to lash out against his bindings. He was barely even aware what was happening around him; everything had become a spiraling torrent of darkness and fire, emitting from the opening portal from behind him.

Finn became exceedingly worried when Sef's cries died down to almost nothing and then finally to silence. As Shendu seemed prepared to commence the final part of the ceremonial incantations, he approached him and got his attentions with a gentle tap on his shoulder.

"What do you idiots want?" Shendu asked furiously with a sharp turn of his head, and Finn nearly cringed at the hatred in his voice but managed to hold his ground this time, standing with a sudden strength before his demonic leader that he had never been able to muster before.

"You have to stop this! Sef is going to die if you don't halt what this ceremony!" Finn shouted above the horrendous sound of the flames and the tremulous and heated winds venting from the demon realm. Shendu merely laughed at his concerns however, still grasping that ancient spell book and preparing to utter the last part of the sorcery.

"You fool! Stop now when I am so close to completing what Jackie Chan never allowed me to do? I do not care if the child lives or not through the process or not! Even if he somehow manages to survive the process then I am sure one of my brothers or sisters would love to devour him!" Shendu said, hitting Finn away as he turned back to the forming portal, still cackling at his insinuation as Finn got to his feet again and growled under his breath.

The other Enforcers seemed just as confused by this entire dilemma as he was. What could they do to help the child without simply inflicting suffering upon themselves and accomplishing nothing? Finn stood and looked to the others with a desperate expression. Sef's torment was weighing heavily upon them harder than ever now that there was complete silence. They knew that in the state he was in right now, another dose of incantations and severance into the demon world he would surely kill him. And they also knew they couldn't let that happen.

Sure they were thieves, dishonest, sometimes violent and reckless, but under no conditions had Finn or the others even considered killing anyone before nor had even considered its horrible consequences. They could never have guessed the guilt associated with this sort of crime, knowing that someone was dying and only standing by doing nothing.

"We have to do something guys. Shendu's willing to let the kid die and we can't let that happen. He's just a little guy," he said, remembering his own small cousins back in Ireland and unable to comprehend how he'd react if they had even been murdered in the midst of their budding youth.

"But how're we gonna help him Finn? Shendu'll just strike us away or throw _us _into the demon realm," Ratso said with a cringe. That realm was looking less and less inviting with every moment that passed. Sef let out a strangled moan and his body fell entirely limp.

Chow suddenly came up with an idea that was better than anything else that Finn or the other Enforcers had managed to connive. "Why don't we steal the spell book away? If we can hold off the ceremony long enough then the merging won't be able to happen and Sef won't be in danger any more. And besides that, Shendu's relatives won't be able to escape either," he whispered cautiously, knowing that Shendu had excellent hearing and may overhear the formulation of their rebellion.

There was a nod of general agreement, all except from Hak Foo, who was staring straight ahead at the scene unfolding as Shendu seemed to be looking for the final chant to speak and complete the merger.

"What do you say big guy? You gonna help us?" Finn asked, sensing that perhaps Hak Foo was still loyal to Shendu and Valmont, but the massive warrior simply looked down apathetically and replied, "Only weakling kills children."

"That-a-boy," Finn said with a slight smile, arranging them into a group formation and approaching the fire demon slowly as to not draw his attention to their resistance.

Sef looked up from where he was shivering and barely grasping reality any longer, seeing only forms mixing with color and movement. He was so dizzy he could barely even tell where he was any longer, but as he stared into space he managed to spot the Enforcers approaching Shendu, preparing to attempt to free him from the demon sorcerer's grasp. A faint smile came over his face, robbing him of his last strength as he cringed and shook more violently as he stood suspended into the air.

Hak Foo made the first move, coming up from behind Shendu and wrapping his powerful arms around his being, and before he could even react to the revolution taking place, Chow and Finn had wrenched the spell book from his arms and tossed it to Ratso, who was standing there awaiting an essential part for himself.

"Run you idiot! Get as far away from here as you can with that book!" Finn shouted, and Ratso immediately did as he was told, running towards the trapdoor cut into the roof that led down into the building where he could flee.

"You traitors will pay dearly for this!" Shendu shouted viciously, knocking Hak Foo away with a sudden blast of fire energy that emitted from his entire being, and Chow and Finn could only run after the demon as he swiftly made his way towards Ratso, who was unaware he was even being pursued until Shendu grasped the collar of his suit, reaching forward and setting his jacket on fire with a simple fire hex. Ratso let out a piercing yelp as he let go of the book instinctively to swiftly take off the incinerating fabric.

Shendu reached down and repossessed the book, but before he could even turn around to attempt the ritual once more, Finn and Chow lunged at him in unison and brought him down onto the roof with a rushed double body slam, the book sliding across its slick surface as Shendu let out a hideous growl of rage.

"I will see to it that you are all devoured the instant my brethren are freed!" he promised, both of them surged off of him by another blast of fire energy that Shendu surrounding his being with, getting onto his feet once more and walking over to where the book had come to rest.

Finn and Chow just a few yards in front of where Sef was still clinging to his life, his body convulsing slightly with the overwhelming instinct to survive as he looked down upon the two of them, both struggling to get back onto their feet even with the injuries they had sustained in the impact. Finn looked up sadly at him as he managed to get his torso up off the ground.

"We're sorry kid, we really did try to stop this..." he barely got out, when he realized that Sef had been smiling throughout their process to try and spare him this meaningless death.

"Thank you for trying...I don't hold any of you responsible for this. Shendu is just as oppressive to you as he is to me, and you 't have done anything to stop him..." he uttered, and Finn could only watched sadly as Sef coughed and choked on the ashes carried by the winds, his face revealing many burns from when he attempted to turn and look into the unholy oblivion.

Suddenly Chow and Finn noticed the strange crimson energy forming around them that Shendu used to cast his spells and were catapulted away from the ground in front of Sef, Shendu walking forwards with the book opened once more to the page he needed. Sef watched in horror as the two of them slammed against the concrete barriers surrounding the roof, letting out only muffled shrieks of pain before they fell unconscious.

Shendu laughed softly and darkly, looking up at Sef as he seemed ready to simply give in to the agony. "I have been looking forward to this day for ages Sef, when finally the other demon sorcerers would walk the earth once more and we can have control over you pitiful and weak humans once again. I just wanted to thank you before I commence this last segment of the spell for aiding me in this process. Your death shall not be in vain child."

Sef didn't even have time to scream or weep or do anything before he heard the last words uttered from the mouth of the demon. They echoed through the shifting air and then through him. He could feel and sense their horrid darkness as they passed through his being and then echoed into the distant demon realm, calling forth his trapped brethren and completing the tear in between the dimensions.

The final step was happening, and Sef could only watch in horror as the ground beneath himself suddenly glowed in different shades of red and darkness, collecting from the evils of humanity and all the vice that the world could offer, focused into this one point beneath him. Then, without warning, the energy itself lunged from the ground below and channeled itself into his amulet, the eye scrawled upon it matching the combined hue as Sef let out a piercing scream. The dark energy poured itself into and then through him just as the spell itself had, cutting into the portal to give it the strength to open fully here before them. This continued for another unbearable moment, until he felt it die down and merely let his being fall slack.

He heard a noise from behind him, emitting from within the now visible demon realm as he continued to hover in front of it, the severance point where he was forced to remain until Shendu wished it to be closed. His eyes opened wide and his entire being quaked even with the lack of strength he had any longer. He could see several beings, differing in size approaching him from within the fires of the underworld and towards the human realm. The burning sensation became so excruciating he let out a strangled cry and felt at his being was lifted into the air to provide passage for the demons.

He watched in weakened terror as several beings filed out from the portal, almost being knocked from his bindings by an enormous demon that stood several stories into the air, when finally the seven demons had all emerged and the portal needn't be open any longer. Shendu said the final words of the incantation, and suddenly Sef felt the invisible bindings suddenly disappear, and he was plummeting towards the earth below, his vision still so confusing everything seemed to be playing in slow motion. He hit the ground with a sickening thud, but he had experienced so much torture just now it was like being punched after a continuous beating. He felt himself trembling instinctively as he sensed the great evils before him, could still feel the darkness rushing from their unseen beings.

He heard voices, several of them speaking as he opened his eyes and looked to the plain before him, seeing Shendu standing only a few feet before him and surrounded by the most frightening creatures Sef had ever seen even in his dizzying state and condition. He could only manage to lift his upper body up a bit, recoiling a bit when he realized they were all watching him. He felt a small, warm stream of blood fall from his mouth as he realized what was to come now.

"Brothers and sisters, I present to you the boy who provided you with your freedom, Sef Artaxerxes..."


	14. Trouble Comes in Sets of Eight Part One

Sef let out a muffled scream, though it hardly seemed necessary to show his fears. As the demons all turned to look at him, he recoiled against the cement barrier of the building. It was either face them, or plummet to his doom. He was still contemplating which one would be more painless for him to endure.

He couldn't have imagined more fearsome creatures if he had tried, varying in size and appearance but not in the amount of power they possessed he theorized, recalling vaguely his study of the demons of different cultures in history. Since they played such a large role in the ancient writings and beliefs of the Egyptians, he had expanded his research just to satisfy his curiosity as to why mortals of the past feared such mythological and seemingly imaginary creatures.

Now he knew why firsthand...

"You are telling us that this small child was the one responsible for setting us free?" Bai Tza said in sheer disbelief as Sef managed to regain his footing. Shendu laughed softly as Sef staggered out of fear and weariness from the severing ceremony, his legs trembling violently. Some of his brethren found it amusing as well and laughed alongside him.

"It is ironic isn't it, that it took the force of eight powerful and great human sorcerers of the past to seal us away for what they believed to be forever, only to have us freed by a small, weak child," Shendu laughed as Sef was forced to keep himself erect by leaning on the barrier, looking at them through his disorientation. Somehow he could sense that his death would be upon him soon unless he thought of something to do.

"How did you know you could use the child to severe the barrier Shendu? It seems illogical you could simply find him in an entire world festering with humans," Tso Lan asked, crossing his arms and watching Sef intently as he tried to keep standing.

"It was simple. The human Valmont did some business with the child's father and I caught sight of the amulet around his neck. It bore the symbol of the ancient god Wepwawet, who had control over the Gates of the Underworld, and when I did some research upon it, I found out about the entire story of a pharaoh's debt to the god, and how he promised the soul of one of his descendants would be sacrificed to provide a vessel for the god when the ancient beliefs had died away. And thus I arranged everything, Sef's father becoming mysteriously ill and then having him come here, though I would have rather he'd belonged to a more tolerable family," Shendu explained, and it made Sef's blood boil slightly to hear the story again of Shendu's treachery.

"How...how could you? Why did you have to hurt my father...?" Sef asked weakly, falling back onto his knees when he attempted to walk on his own again only to face more humiliation.

"Because he wished to free us you little whelp. It was a needed sacrifice for us to finally walk upon this earth again," Hsi Wu said, stretching out his wings by swooping down in front of Sef, who yelped and attempted to flee from him. But the demon reached forward and grasped him by the collar of his vest, yanking him into the air viciously as the young boy fought futilely.

"It feels so good to be standing on solid earth once more instead of in that horrible abyss of a realm. It seems you finally did something right Shendu, especially after all the other failures you needed to endure in attempting to free us," Xiao Fung said, the winds suddenly increasing slightly in response to his words as Sef continued to try and make His Wu let go of him.

"Let me go you overgrown bat!" Sef spat, but Hsi Wu responded to his resistance by taking off into the air back towards his comrades with Sef in tow, who was none to happy to suddenly be lifted into the air.

"No! No! I'm afraid of heights!" he shouted childishly, covering his eyes as Hsi Wu let out a laugh at his cowardice.

"It will be the least of your fears in a moment," he hissed, suddenly tossing Sef like a rag doll towards the ground, right into the center of a circle that had formed of the awaiting demons. Sef hit hard, his already pained body suddenly in utter agony as he let out a strangled cry and shook violently where he landed.

"It would be only proper to give the mortal responsible for freeing us a quick and painless death, unlike what we have planned for the rest of your filthy race. I suggest we bury him alive," Dai Gui snapped, making Sef cringe as he imagined such a fate and held his breath in preparation.

"No, a quick death would be a swift strike of lightning. I can feel a storm approaching so you are in good fortune child," Tchang Zu said, listening as thunder sang over the horizon, and again Sef reacted with a fearful, short scream. His fears of thunderstorms would definitely be unbearable should he ever survive this event, which was looking more and more impossible with each moment that passed.

"Don't waste such a delicious mortal with such powerful attacks. I shall simply devour the little morsel," Po Kong said, shifting her enormous body in his direction and suddenly reaching down to grasp him. He wedged his head up between two of her fingers, gulping as she brought him far up into the air.

"You...you wouldn't want to eat me. I'm barely even as big as your finger! Besides I'm all skin and bones, there's not even a bit of fat on me at all," Sef said in a nervous fit, finding his lungs compressed in her hand as he tried to writhe his way free. 'Thank God for my family's small body structure and abnormal amount of metabolism in this case...'

"Hmm, I do wish you were a bit meatier than you are, but you'll have to do for an appetizer of what I'll be consuming soon enough," she said, opening her mouth to swallow him whole when suddenly Shendu intervened.

"Wait, do not devour him yet Po Kong. I have yet another use for him before you can do whatever you wish to him," Shendu said, and Po Kong sighed with a disappointed tone and simply dropped him back to the earth. He rolled along her pompous flesh and found himself at the base of her a moment later, his face planted into the earth as double vision now plagued him.

"Oh great, now there's two of every demon..." he said incoherently to himself as he stood again and saw Shendu approach swiftly, preparing to grasp him once more. But Sef realized this and began to flee, running towards a nearby gap in the circle of demons, but before he could reach it, flames shot up from the roof of the building and encircled him as well, trapping him into a small cage of fire. He looked around desperately for a way to escape it, but he found himself utterly trapped once again and could only watch the demon come closer.

"You continue to underestimate me Sef. While I will admit at times you have managed to evade me you will not escape me this time. I still have another task for you to completely, very similar to the first one," Shendu said with a horrendous grin, and Sef shivered but held his ground, feeling somewhat protected by the flames. At least now the other demons couldn't lunge for him any longer.

"What are you talking about, another task for me to complete? Whatever it is, I won't comply! I won't help you free any more demons or horrible creatures from that oblivion!" Sef declared, getting as far away from the demon sorcerer as he could while at the same time putting on a defiant gaze. If he was going to die, he sure wasn't going to reopening that portal once more.

But that was exactly what Shendu had in mind for him. "Oh, you needn't worry about that young Sef. I do not wish to release any more demons from that place. I wish to reopen it so I can cast Jackie Chan and his accursed family into it and be rid of them forever!" he proclaimed with a venomous shout, and Sef's once brave features melted into ones of absolute terror as he realized the fate he would condemn them to.

"Never! I would never do that to Jackie or Jade or any of them! You may as well kill me or torture me or devour me now, cause I refuse to do your bidding any longer Shendu!" Sef said, suddenly feeling protectiveness mostly for Jade rushing through his blood. If he was forced to die at their hands, he was going to be fighting to keep their own lives preserved.

But Shendu smiled at his meager stand against him, and the flames died down suddenly as he took a step forwards with his hand opened to receive him. "Come now Sef, you wouldn't want me to cast you in there as well, for if you continue to resist me, I will see to it that you join them!" he declared, reaching out to grip his throat once more and force him back towards the weak point between the realms. The other demons murmured their approval of these fates coming into the making, and Sef could feel his blood turning into frigid ice as he contemplated what he could do to prevent it.

Suddenly he dropped to the ground, his sparse karate techniques flashing through his mind instinctively. He swung one of his skinny legs around and managed to kick out Shendu's legs, and the demon fell to the ground as he sprinted up from the ground and tried to get as far away as possible. He headed for the gap between the demons, his eyes unfaltering in their view of his escape route.

Hsi Wu flew down upon him first, attempting to seize at him before he could get far, but Sef ducked out of the way and instead leapt into the air, wrenching his arms around the demon's throat and recoiling them tightly. Hsi Wu choked a bit from the force, but his wings managed to loosen Sef's grip enough so he could breath once more. Sef eventually let go once the demon had indirectly flown out of the area where the demons were gathered, sprinting across the rest of the flat surface as the other demons unleashed their abilities upon him.

He felt himself suddenly lifting off the ground, heading feet first into the dark night sky above as he saw Tso Lan chanting something rhythmically and Sef realized he was responsible for the manipulation of gravity around him. Pulling off his headband, he flung it at the demon with all his might, and it made contact with the demon right at his own forehead, breaking his concentration long enough for Sef to come back to the earth and face the onslaught of the others.

Po Kong attempted to grab him again but he dodged to the side, running instead towards the barrier around the roof so he could get down to the lower ledge and find another escape route. Bai Tsa had reached the door leading back into the building and was summoning whatever water she could grasp from within it, flooding the surface of the roof until it was deep enough to slow his progress. He was right about to reach the barrier when suddenly a fierce wind hit him from behind.

He turned to see Xiao Fung grinning evilly just a few yards behind, stirring up the winds and lashing them out against him fiercely. Sef realized in horror what was about to happen as he felt himself sliding across the water with his sneakers unable to keep friction with the ground any longer. He was attempting to push him over the edge! A laugh emitted from the demon, who seemed already to be expecting victory from his actions.

Sef couldn't manage to stop himself, suddenly making contact with the edge and leaning over as he bent to the winds and groaned weakly with his efforts to resist it. He felt himself being slowly lifted into the air and knew he would soon fall to the ground below, where all the people were gathered unknowingly of what was happening.

He was right about to plummet when suddenly he felt several hands grab him and pull him back onto the roof, and he turned to see a some surprising faces there beside him.

"Hey kid, we thought you could use some help considering it's eight against one," Finn said as the four of them helped him back onto the roof, and a fierce cry suddenly emitted from behind them as Shendu stepped forward.

"You will pay for this betrayal by joining Chan and the others in the netherworld! And you..." he said, turning his direction towards Sef, "You will be tormented until you beg for death child!" he proclaimed, suddenly lifting his hands directly into the air and towards the darkening skies. The storm that Tchang Zu had predicated was indeed beginning to form in reaction to the demonic aura outpouring from atop the roof.

Suddenly, from the tops of the barriers around the roof crimson flames appeared, towering into the sky and denying them an escape route or perhaps a swifter end than the demons had in store for them. Sef and the four Enforcers cowered beside one another as the demons approached.

"Uh, anyone got any bright ideas on how we escape this alive?" Chow asked, removing his broken sunglasses shattered in from Shendu's aggression towards them earlier. The other three Enforcers immediately shook their heads in defeat, unable to devise any scheme that could possibly save them from eight powerful demons.

"The five of you are looking rather pale. Bow before our immense power!" Dai Gui declared, the ground beneath them suddenly beginning to shake as he utilized his ability to control the earth below their feet. The sounds of the horrified crowds sang from the ground, echoing into the air as the demons seemed to relish in the fear and panic.

"Ah, the sweet chorus of frightened humans," Tso Lan said as they began to move forward, all of them seeming prepared to send them into their own personal abysses in the aftermath of their abilities.

Sef couldn't believe this was the end. There had to be something he could do to save himself as well as the Enforcers and Jade and the entire world. If he didn't, then everyone was doomed to suffer the wrath and hunger for human flesh of these beasts, and he would spend every waking moment of his shortening life feeling guilty of having sentenced the earth to this fate. A string of furious lightning suddenly shot from overhead, scarring across the sky and gaining his attentions regardless of the fear pouring through him.

His eyes widened as an idea suddenly came to him, though it could very well end up killing himself and the others anyways. But it was the only option he could think of, and he had to attempt it since their fates would be no different regardless.

He turned to the Enforcers first to give them a word of warning. "While I have them distracted, I want all of you to move over to the small compartment and get on top of it. There's a ladder sitting next to it so you can," Sef whispered, and all the Enforcers stared back with looks of bafflement upon their faces.

"We can't leave you kid, you'll be killed for sure," Finn said, and Sef knew that in the wake of his plans he would be, but he couldn't let them think that or he wouldn't be able to protect them.

"Just do what I say and do it quickly. Oh, and thanks for what you guys did for me earlier again. I know you didn't want me to suffer this fate," Sef said, suddenly stepping away to the side and watching as the demon's eyes followed him and ignored the others.

He plastered a cocky smile upon his face, roughly masking the fear he felt as he watched the Enforcers slowly slip to the side and out of harm's way as he had hoped.

"I find it pitiful that I've managed to survive so far against eight powerful demons such as yourselves. If you are indeed so strong you should have smite me almost immediately, but you have failed to so far," Sef said, striking a nerve in all of them as Ratso adjusted the ladder against the side of the compartment and they began their swift ascent. Sef managed to make his smile far more at ease when he saw they were nearly out of harm's way.

"You little brat. If we didn't need you to catapult Chan and the others into the abyss we were sentenced to, I'd drown you where you stand," Bai Tsa said, a bit more water flooding onto the roof as she spoke. Sef's grin only grew wider as he let out as pompous a laugh as he could muster.

"I find that doubtable in what you have revealed to me so far," Sef said, suddenly turning his attentions to the demon who had claimed to control the power of thunder and lightning, "I bet you couldn't even strike me here where I stand, even with the storm overhead."

Tchang Zu clenched his fists, bearing his jagged teeth as his anger got the better of him and he defied Shendu's previous wishes. "You stupid little brat! I will obliterate you here and now!" he shouted, and suddenly the clouds darkened overhead and a large bolt of lightning surfaced, so warm it glimmered with a light blue color as it streaked towards the earth. The other demons watched in amazement as he summoned the energy and brought it down upon Sef in an excruciating spell, who stood there watching in the blink of an eye as it approached.

"Perfect," was all he said with his grin still upon his face just before he stepped away, the lightning striking the ground just beside him where he had previously stood.

With the water that Bai Tsa had brought upon the roof earlier, the electricity suddenly spread at a colossal rate, traveling throughout the entire roof and channeling into the several beings standing upon it. The demons let out cries of agony as the lightning poured into them, as well as Sef as he was electrocuted with the bulk of it from being so close.

The Enforcers watched with horror as this occurred, suddenly realizing why Sef had given them his command. "He...he wanted us to get up here so we wouldn't be hurt by the lightning since there's no water up here..." Finn barely got out, all of them suddenly blinded as the lightning finally dissipated and vanished into every direction.

The demons had all fallen to the earth, stirring only slightly as they remained in the tremulous waters and still reeling from the attack. The Enforcers looked to where Sef was, laying into the water with his frozen expression into the sky and hardly moving, his body only twitching with the electricity still coursing through his being.

Without warning the door suddenly burst from down below them, and Jade was the first one to rush out onto the roof, brandishing a rather unthreatening toy gun as she came to his rescue.

"Sorry it took so long but the elevator was...out...of...order..." she said, suddenly surveying the scene of the disoriented and wounded demons and finally catching sight of a small form lying motionless in the shallow pool of water. Her eyes instantly welled up with tears as she dropped her artificial weapon and stared in silent terror.

"No, Sef!"


	15. Trouble Comes in Sets of Eight Part Two

Jade could barely concentrate on where she was going; the panic and fear had consumed her ability to think and see straight. All she could focus on was Sef's limp figure sprawled upon the roof in a pool of water.

When she reached him she could see the extent of his injuries. His arms and legs were burnt and bleeding slightly, his hair a tattered, scorched mess from the strike. His expression was lucid and revealed his monotone state of abandon before he had sacrificed himself in order to stop the Eight Demon Sorcerers. He moved only slightly as she stood there for a suspended moment, and she knew it was only due to the horrid electricity still coursing through his veins.

The next thing she knew, she was carefully kneeling beside him, her knees soaked instantly in the puddle as she reached forward to try awaken him. When she first touched his flesh it was horribly warm, but she forced herself to lift him up off the ground and lean his head against her shoulder. She heard the others walking out onto the roof, unable to grasp the sight of the fallen demons, but Jade was too busy attempting to arouse Sef, who hadn't moved even gently since she had lifted him up.

"Please, please be okay Sef..." she said, her arms wrapped around his neck as she shouted futilely into his ear and rested her head against his. But nothing came by the sound of the mourning winds, and she began to weep.

"It...it isn't fair...he didn't do anything wrong. We're the ones who brought him here, the ones who got him into this..." she began, allowing his head to fall back onto her shoulder once more as she held him up, feeling the warmth of her tears streak down her face and listening as they rhythmically rapped against the waters below.

Once the sadness had subsided, she instantly became enraged, at herself and everything around her as only was instinctive. "It doesn't make any sense! Why, why did they have to hurt Sef? He was just a kid like me...and he had to kill himself to save everyone's lives...I just don't understand. The Dog talisman was supposed to keep you alive..." she finally sank back into a confused and mourning state, feeling the warmth of his blood falling slightly onto her already wet clothes as she continued to hold him there.

"That...that was why I did this Jade," he suddenly whispered back, and she froze and looked down as his eyes opened and he raised a hand to his forehead with a shudder of pain. He smiled back up at her once the recoil of pain had once again faded. "I knew whatever you had given me kept me from being killed by the severance into the demon world. That was why I risked doing this to stop them. I knew I could count on you."

Jade felt like laughing out of happiness but knew it wasn't the time. Instead she embraced Sef so fiercely he let out a strangled yelp of torment as she hit against his wounds and he recoiled slightly, nursing the black, scarred flesh down his legs with a soft touch.

"This is going to take a while to heal huh?" Sef said with a faint smile though the injury was causing him indescribable pain. He reached into his pocket he had hidden the item within and saw a talisman as he had suspected, inscribed with the mark of a Dog. He looked up curiously, unable to decipher what it meant.

"The Dog talisman gives you immorality since it can't be destroyed. And..." she reached into the pocket of her own vest and fished out another talisman she had brought along. "This is the Horse talisman. It can heal your burn wounds."

Sef didn't look entirely sure, but with the excruciating sensation of feeling and listening to his dry flesh break and bleed he took it from her and held it close, saying a small prayer by habit and hoping it would work.

"You can open your eyes again Sef. This ancient magic stuff works really fast," Jade said, and Sef did as she said and looked down to see the transformation he feared wouldn't come had already unfolded. His arms and legs were completely unscathed and his once distraught clothes and hair were neat and tidy again, all except for the fact that he was wet and starting to develop a cold. He stared in amazement as Jade took back the stone and tucked it away nicely with a suddenly cheerful disposition about her.

"That's incredible. In all my years excavating with my father back in Egypt I've never witnessed such powerful objects of sorcery. Most of the things I've seen have been common magic, small charms and simple curses, but nothing like this," Sef said, examining his healed and flawless body and then standing onto his feet to demonstrate his returned strength. Jade stood up as well, smiling to see her friend returned to normal.

Suddenly another bolt of lightning crashed against the sky, and Sef felt the elements beneath them shift and sigh against some external force, and turned to see the demons getting back onto their feet as well. His attack had stunned them, but hadn't come close to defeating them.

"Jade! Sef! Get off the roof and to safety!" Jackie shouted suddenly, but the both of them knew they couldn't abandon the others with the demons recovering and preparing to counterattack.

"Do you happen to have any bright ideas on how to bring down eight exceedingly powerful demons who have control over the elements of nature?" Sef asked sarcastically as he let out a tense breath and crouched into an instinctive martial arts stance. Jade mirrored his actions, taking a stance of the opposite side so both were covered.

"I didn't know you knew martial arts," Jade said, and Sef put on a somewhat faltering smile.

"I've been white belt for the past six months, so you can guess the extent of my training," Sef said, slightly embarrassed, but Jade simply shrugged and suddenly they realized that a few figures were approaching from the side as Jackie and the others began to slowly retreat back to where they refused to move from.

"Watch out Sef, it's the Dark Hand!" Jade said, preparing to tug him out of danger's way by the collar of his vest, but he halted her by planting his feet upon the ground and turning sharply to face her.

"They're good guys now...sort of. They tried to help me escape when they saw what Shendu was trying to do with me," Sef said as the four Enforcers approached to support them, halting behind both Sef and Jade with nervous grins upon their faces.

"Glad to see you're still alive kid," Finn said, giving a thumbs up as he signaled at the same moment for the Enforcers to prepare. Sef giggled lightly but continued to stare forth.

"I wouldn't say that just yet Finn, considering the predicament we seem to be in now..." Sef replied just as Jackie, Uncle, Tohru, and Augustus gathered before them and the demons resituated themselves.

Sef had never seen Shendu so enraged before, even when he had aggravated him those times when he had been held prisoner within their base. His eyes looked bloodthirsty and prepared to tear his heart out the moment he reached the now trembling boy, who was attempting to keep his position though the fear kept telling him to run.

"You will pay for that with your life Sef! And I will make sure you suffer to within an inch of your life before I grant you death!" Shendu promised, and suddenly Sef felt a heat irradiating from the ground beneath them. His eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen.

"Scatter!" he shouted, and instantly everyone moved at a different angle just a second before the flames shot up from the roof, leaving a gaping void in the substance as Sef moved his feet away from the jagged edge. He had been a literal hand's length from being caught in the fire.

The demons moved swiftly, choosing their opponents randomly as the mortals backed away and prolonged the commencement of the battle as long as possible.

Shendu made the first strike against Jackie, and from there on in a demon selected a human to target as best they could. Sef and Jade attempted to stay together, but they soon found themselves separated when Hsi Wu swept in from above, attempting to snatch Sef but missing when he leapt rather ungracefully to the side.

"Did you miss me Jade?" he hissed as he soared into the air and then back down again, grasping Jade by the collar of her vest and wrenching her into the air. By the time Sef realized she had vanished from beside himself there wasn't anything he could do but yell suggestions.

"The flesh where his wings meet his back is his weak point!" he shouted, but before he could continue he felt himself forced from his feet by an invisible force and launched against the roof barrier once more, looking up to see Xiao Fung approaching with an insidious grin upon his face.

"You may have fooled my brother into striking us down temporarily, but there is no way you can reverse the power of the wind," he laughed, suddenly summoning up several vicious gusts from behind in the darkness of the nearing night, and Sef felt himself once again dangerously close to falling over again. He clenched his teeth and fists, blocking the wind with an arm so it didn't impact his face.

"No I can't, but I can utilize it!" Sef shouted, suddenly jumping into the air and allowing the fierce winds to carry him. He turned and reached out, grasping the edge of the next roof and pulling himself up quickly onto it with a faint grin on his face.

"You fool, you're letting him get away!" Tchang Zu growled, suddenly leaping across to the next roof as well and landing just a few yards from where Sef stood. He gulped and stepped away, only to feel the roof shake with each step the demon took.

"I will cast your soul into the depths of the Underworld and feed your body to the maggots you worthless child," Tchang Zu threatened, and Sef heard several more cracks of thunder from overhead as he watched the demon approach and realized there was nothing he could do to combat him.

Above in the skies, Jade was having her own problems. Hsi Wu refused to give her any opportunity to strike the weak area that Sef had indicated, now carrying her under his arm like a package and looking for an appropriate spot to drop her and watch her plummet to the earth.

"What do you think Jade? Would you like me to let go of you...here?" he asked, suddenly holding her merely by the collar in a single hand. She yelped as she looked down to the earth many, many feet away, gulping as she attempted to think of some way to keep herself from becoming a rather big smear upon the pavement below.

"Hey Hsi Wu," she said, gaining his attention for the vital second she needed, "Think fast."

She body slammed into him with all her weight and force since she was partially level with him, and he let out a shout as they fell back towards the building. In the confusion as they fell she managed to dig her fingernails into the sensitive skin at the edge of his wings, and Hsi Wu now let out a screech of pain. She let go of him but kept her feet planted upon his stomach, using him as a cushion only another second later when they came crashing onto the roof. She leapt away, looking to see what else was happening around her.

Tohru was taking on Po Kong because he was biggest, managing to hold his own against her attempts to grasp him and devour him. He drive his two massive fists into her midsection, which Jade considered to be her entire body with the gluttonous fat that seeped everywhere, and she let out a muffled scream and fell backwards, bridging the span of her enormous body against this and the next building.

Jackie was fighting Shendu and doing his best to keep from being scorched by the demon's continuous tries at bringing up the flames from beneath his feet. He continued to move, but never took his eyes off of his enemy.

"Give up Chan, you cannot possibly think that you can defeat the eight mighty Demon Sorcerers do you?" Shendu hissed with a victorious grin as he slammed a hard right hook into Jackie's face suddenly, but as he flung into the air Jade caught him and broke his fall onto the concrete.

"Oh, thank you Jade...Jade?! I told you and Sef to run!" he said, looking down as Jade groaned with the impact of having him land upon her.

"Me and Sef couldn't just run away Jackie! You need all the help you can get," Jade said as she stood, looking over to see how Sef was doing against Xiao Fung.

But fighting there now was Augustus and Bai Tsa, who was launching continuous water attacks against him that he managed to dodge rather clumsily. Her heart sank into her stomach automatically. Where was Sef? She heard Uncle mutter a chi spell nearby against Dai Gui, whose earth-morphing powers were suddenly laid to rest when he found himself mysteriously rooted to the ground and paralyzed by the incantations.

"Jackie, I can't find Sef!" Jade shouted, sprinting across the roof with her eyes darting in every direction, but all she could see was the demons clashing against the Enforcers and her family. She knew that even in all the chaos she would be able to see Sef if he was close by.

Suddenly she saw a streak of black out of the corner of her eye and turned, seeing that Sef was now over on the roof of the next building, backing away from the massive form of Tchang Zu, who looked prepared to gobble the small child up with the glare in his eyes.

"Sef!" she shouted, running towards the edge of the roof with all her might, but once she reached it and looked down she realized just how high in the air she was. All she could do was look on as Sef found himself suddenly cornered.

"I'll relish is bringing about your demise you foolish child. You should have known you'd perish if you challenged the might of the Eight Demon Sorcerers," Tchang Zu hissed towards him as he found himself arching over the railing strung around the roof, noticing how incredibly far away the ground was below with an uneasy cringe. He was really in a terrible situation this time, unable to contrive a plan offhand on how to keep himself from being struck by lightning once again or pushed over the edge. Even though his life would be sustained through the Dog talisman, he didn't want to go through that suffering again.

Then he remembered the other talisman he possessed, the one that had protected him earlier when the Enforcers had been his primary enemies. He reached into his pocket, feeling around for the one that could save him, all while Tchang Zu towered over him with a sinister grin upon his face.

"Stop resisting child, or your end will only be more painful for you to endure!" Tchang Zu declared, suddenly choosing to use his brute strength instead of his abilities as he swiped a large claw down upon Sef, who was still frantically searching for the stone.

Suddenly the flesh of his hand made contact with its strange warm surface, and he concentrated as he quickly had before.

He felt the same heat swiftly radiate out into his eyes, shooting out and making contact with the alpha demon at his midsection and catapulting him backwards until he slammed against another portion of the railing. Sef breathed a subtle sigh of relief, realizing just how close to death he had been. He pulled the Dog and Pig talismans out of his pocket with a brief victory grin, looking at the two zodiac animals carved into the seemingly useless rocks.

"Thank goodness for these. I promise to adopt a dog from the animal shelter and never eat pork again," he said to himself quietly, turning once more to signal to Jade that he was all right, when suddenly he realized his path was blocked.

"You won't be needing those anymore!" Shendu shouted, prying the talismans from Sef's hands and then delivering a crushing kick to his stomach. He fell to his knees embracing himself once more, trembling with the horrible ache surfacing from the impact.

"You have defied me and rebelled against me for the last time! I care not about sending Chan and his accomplices into the void any longer so long as I can bring about your end Sef Artaxerxes!" Shendu shouted ferociously as Sef cowered slightly, sensing the growing demonic aura emitting from him, but before he could react, a circle of fire appeared around him.

Only this time it was getting bigger and the flames were closing in, rotating as though in a ceremonial dance and coming ever nearer to casting him aflame. He gasped and looked all around him for a weak point that could be manipulated, but no such point existed. He was completely and utterly trapped.

"Sef!" Jade shouted again, approaching as Jackie seized her from the ground and leapt across the roofs with limited skill, considering he ended up doing a summersault in order to come face up once again.

"Let Sef go Shendu, your fight is with me," Jackie said, but the fire demon simply grinned at them and continued with the spell, slowly consuming the shrinking space that Sef had left. Everything quieted suddenly as Sef let out several almost inhuman screams as the first flames touched his skin, his friends all looking horrified as the demons grinned and cheered on his demise. Sef clenched his head, tears streamed down his cheeks as he finally vanished into the flames and nothing remained.

"No!" Jade yelled, attempting to run and find some way, any way to rescue him, but Jackie held her back with a stunned and woeful expression. Jade allowed her tears to fall once more when it seemed no sign of Sef remained, and only the flames existed.

"No..." she barely got out, choked by her utter sadness as she feel to her knees and buried her face into Jackie's chest, sobbing openly for the first time he had ever witnessed. Shendu was laughing tyrannically as he summoned back his flames, and then a gasp came from him and everyone else around them. Both their gazes instantly looked back up to see what had happened.

He stood precisely where Sef had been, and in some ways still was the young boy that had been devoured by the flames. But he was different, changed. He was suddenly taller, his hair combed straight and his skin a tone darker than Sef's had been. His eyes were fierce and burned with an amber color that replaced the once soft, sapphire hue that Sef had possessed. His clothes were far different as well, ancient in appearance and craft, a blend of tan and black and the amulet hanging deftly by the fabric. It was glimmering so vibrantly that it hovered above his chest, suspended by some unseen force.

As everyone continued to stare unblinkingly, only Shendu was able to utter a single word that echoed through the silent night air.

_"_W_-Wepwawet..."_

**Author's Note: **Did you honestly believe I would let my little Sef die? Of course not, I simply had him possessed by an ancient and wrathful Egyptian god of the Underworld, that's all.


	16. Vessel of Ancient Wrath

The next moment seemed to hang forever in the air as everyone took in this new being, standing perfectly still, only staring forward towards the demons with a wrathful expression upon his face. Jade could barely believe what she was witnessing. What had happened to Sef? The whole world seemed to hold its breath fearfully when the entity finally began to speak.

"You have broken the sacred palisade of the Underworld. Tampering with such volatile elements and darkness from the realm of mortals is forbidden to any being, be they demon, spirit or flesh. You will pay for this unholy insolence Shendu," came the voice of the almost inhuman presence. Sef's voice could still be heard speaking, but it was overshadowed by a dark but eminent whisper of whomever had possessed him. As he spoke the ground beneath him began to quiver with an unseen force, an unnatural light glimmering through the cracks of the previous conflict and age.

Shendu seemed suddenly nervously, taking a solemn step back in retreat as the unearthly being spoke, his siblings looking equally unnerved by the appearance of this ancient god within the body of a seeming harmless child. Sef's body almost seemed to be too small to contain the invading spirit.

"I will not answer to the words of a forgotten deity Wepwawet. Your authority expired years ago when your own father Anubis locked away the bulk of your powers to keep you from becoming too dangerous to the mortal world. Do you honestly believe I will bow to a weathered relic such as a spirit like yours?" Shendu responded, though his tone was unfounded and shivering slightly. With his words of defiance the air temperature seemed to jump fifty degrees, almost too intense for any of them to remain up upon the roof.

"Jackie...what's going on?" Jade suddenly asked, watching as little by little it seemed her friend was melting away into the solemn figure of the youthful divinity. Even now it seemed as though the innocence had been completely purged of his blood, and Wepwawet stood staring straight ahead as though prepared to bring about a vengeful Apocalypse.

Jackie looked more concerned than ever with this new development. With all the ancient sorceries and other events he had witnessed in the past he had never gotten such a dark and sinking feeling from the revived deity before them. Sef's past eyes were becoming more demonic with the second it seemed, the whites of them darkening until they were cobalt and opaque against the amber glow around him. Jackie bent down beside Jade, placing a comforting hand upon her shoulder as they waited silently for something to happen.

"Everything is going to be all right Jade. If...if Wepwawet has emerged from within the amulet to stop the demons then that means he is on our side," Jackie said, and she seemed to relax slightly, though she still worried about Sef. What was happening to him right now?

"If you will not face your punishment gracefully then I will impose it upon you forcefully. I have dealt with your kind in the past, demons that believe they can come and go as they please through the realms of the living and the dead. Just because I have remained dormant for centuries does not mean I have not been watching, and the time has come for you to pay!" Wepwawet suddenly shouted, lunging from his placement upon the roof and rushing forward at an incomprehensible speed.

Shendu didn't even see the aggression coming until Wepwawet had delivered the crushing blow to his face, sending the fire demon catapulting across the gap between the two roofs until he came to rest some half a dozen buildings away.

The other demons backed away only slightly before they all attacked at once, summoning up their individual elements from wherever they could in the vicinity and launching them at Wepwawet as he remained couching down from the fallout of the attack.

"You will pay for your resistance against us!" Tchang Zu proclaimed as he called upon the feverish lightning from above, striking it down upon the celestial's unmoving figure. Their raging elements all seemed to combine together, blending into a single energy that threatened to cave the entire roof in as the others backed away, needing to shield their eyes from the immense light it projected.

"No Sef! I can't let them hurt him Jackie!" Jade suddenly cried, rushing from the protective hold of her uncle and towards the blinding light ahead of them. She clutched several talismans in her hands, preparing to use them if necessary and praying to herself that Sef was still all right. Just because Wepwawet had inhabited his body Jade couldn't believe her friend was gone from this earth.

"Jade, you cannot go near them!" Uncle warned, attempting to catch up with the swift youth just as Jackie tried as well, but the ground beneath them began to shake so badly they found themselves facing the crumbling concrete as the energy erupted. Jade was cast backwards slightly onto her back as the energy became unstable and then dispersed in a fiery explosion, and she looked forward with an expression of horror upon her face.

The smoke and dust finally cleared down, the demons one by one coming back into view as the light faded into the darkness once again, many of them grinning slightly from their triumph, only to gasp as a ninth figure presented itself to them.

Wepwawet stood unharmed, surrounded by an unearthly force of strange darkness. He was looking impatient now, his face distorted into a look of pure hatred as the demons all let out a unified gasp.

"Did you actually expect your mundane elements to stop me? I find it laughable that you believe you can halt my justified retaliation so easily!" Wepwawet declared, suddenly releasing the force that had protected him from their onslaught. The darkness suddenly engulfed each of the demons, thrusting them all in different directions as Wepwawet had physically done to Shendu until they eventually all came crashing against whatever got in the way first.

He simply stood there as the demons failed to counterattack, staring forwards at where Shendu was only now beginning to recover slightly from the hit he had taken from Wepwawet, wiping away the trickle of blood that seeped from a break in the skin. Wepwawet grinned slightly at the sight, giving him a far more frightening appearance than before when he had been utterly serious.

"How does it feel to finally find yourself inferior Shendu? You may have thought you could go about breaking any laws of the divine you wished to, but I will see to it that you are never free to do so for the rest of eternity," Wepwawet suddenly vowed, bringing his weathered hands into the air and conjuring something from the desolate sky. Absolute silence followed, broken only by the sound of something shifting within the depths of another realm and Jade's frantic footsteps across the battered rooftop. She had discarded the talismans from where she had fallen only moments before, now so desperate to reach him that she couldn't have cared less about their presence.

"Sef! Oh please don't let Sef be gone!" she shouted, suddenly reaching the glimmering figure and halting beside him. She had to look him in the face, if only to see a glimpse of Sef within him again, but when Wepwawet finally lowered his gaze to look down upon her, she realized that not a trace of her friend remained. His eyes revealed only the ancient rage that had long since built within the seemingly harmless amulet.

"You would be wise to step away as to not be harmed child," Wepwawet suddenly stated, and before Jade could even react to his suggestion she felt herself being gently lifted from the ground and transported away from him, gliding through the air in the arms of some formless being. She finally found herself dropped suddenly into Jackie's awaiting arms, who looked ready to embrace her and scold her at the same moment.

"Are you crazy Jade?! You could have been hurt, or worse..." Jackie said, setting her onto the ground as she continued to stare forwards at Wepwawet. She slowly slid to her knees, her unblinking eyes focused and unfaltering.

"He's...he's really gone Jackie..." she said quietly, tears welling up in her eyes as the energy around Wepwawet suddenly reached his peak, and he seemed prepared to unleash his final assault upon the demons who, in their state of injury, were only just now beginning to realize the danger they were in.

"Let this be proof to never think a god has died..." Wepwawet declared, his fingers contorting inwards to pull forward the unseen marionette strings of whatever he was summoning, when suddenly he halted, a cry coming out from behind him.

"I won't let you take Sef's body!" Jade suddenly shouted, wrapping her arms around Wepwawet's waist and pushing against him with enough force that they both found themselves plummeting towards the ground. The deity seemed completely caught off guard, his attack scattering from where it had originally been pulled and evaporating into nothingness. The two of them landed beside one another on the ground, Jade opening her eyes to see two burningly evil ones staring back. Wepwawet didn't seem all too happy with her interference, but she couldn't have cared less. He had robbed Sef of his body and she had to make him pay somehow, even if it was a meager attack.

Suddenly the demons stood from where they had ended up in various division of the city, Shendu smiling with amusement at Jade's interceding with Wepwawet's gathering attack.

"Well, it seems our conflict will have to await until another day, but be warned that we will not stop until we've placed you back into your dormancy once again, this time forever!" Shendu declared, suddenly enveloped into the tremulous fire that he conjured, and one by one the other demons each followed Shendu's lead and vanished into an illusion of their own abilities, all with a sinister grin upon their own bloodied faces. The sky overhead began to clear a bit, and Jackie let out a sigh of relief to see that the demons were gone.

But suddenly from ahead a wrathful cry emitted as Wepwawet stood once again and released his anger from the demons' escape. A horrible screech emitted from him that was unequaled by anything they had ever heard before and pierced the night air like a dagger. His fiery eyes darted down towards Jade, who had only managed to sit back up once more and rub the bump forming on her forehead. When she could finally sense the boundless rage directed towards her, she looked up and gasped at the towering figure, beginning to recoil by crawling backwards on her hands and feet.

"You foolish brat! Because of your interference I was unable to place those monsters back into the Underworld!" he spat in her direction, the ground beneath him cobwebbed with growing splits as she retreated further and made sure not to fall through any of the crevices he formed in her escape path.

"How could you do that to Sef? He doesn't deserve to be possessed and used!" she suddenly shouted, and Wepwawet's once aggressive expression very slowly began to die away and he discontinued approaching her. His ceaseless energy died down into nothing and she no longer moved away from him. Eventually his expression became eerily apathetic and stoic, and he was motionless enough to be mistaken as a porcelain statuesque.

"You believe I have taken permanent control of young Sef? You are mistaken child, for I only intend to use Sef's body whenever I feel he or others are in danger. Why else would my powers be born of the amulet whenever he is threatened?" Wepwawet questioned, his tone quieting into a whisper as she considered this. "I have no intentions of retaining control over Sef. His soul is safely preserved within the amulet and will be restored to his body once I have fulfilled what I wish, but thanks to your efforts, those demons who hunted him have managed to elude me."

Jade hung head with a frustrated sigh. It seemed every time she attempted to do something good it backfired right in her face. Wepwawet had never been their enemy just like Jackie had said, but she had felt so helpless when she was unable to detect any of Sef's presence within this new being. Now Shendu and the others had gotten away and would no doubt try to hurt Sef again, and it was all her fault...

"Do not blame yourself. My appearance was sudden and unexpected, and given the evils you have obviously seen it is only natural to believe that I am evil and forceful just as they are. I may be a gatekeeper of the Underworld but that does not mean I am without honor and dignity. Possessing and taking physical form within mortals as a simple vessel is the work of demons alone and not deities of my esteem. I only surfaced because Sef would have died if I had not. Since I can no longer feel the forces of the Eight Demon Sorcerers nearby I will deliver Sef's soul unto his body again, but be warned child," he faced Jade once more with a look of subtle anger, "You must not intercede with my actions again. I do not wish to harm mortals in any way that do not have any connection with the workings of darkness. I have only the well-beings of the living as well as Sef in mind."

Suddenly the darkness around him transformed into that of light, once again drowning out the world around them for a brief moment before it subsided. Jade shut her eyes tightly, only opening them again when the heat died down and she heard a quiet sigh come from the being before her.

Sef laid upon the cold ground, curled into a fetal position and looking serene enough to be a slumbering infant. Everything had fallen back into place, his messy hair, his wrinkled and stained clothes, and the amulet still strung around his neck with the eye turned up in eternal watch. Jade could barely hold in her excitement to see her friend returned and rushed to his side, arousing him with a violent shake to his shoulders.

"Sef, are you all right?" she asked frantically as the small boy stirred and slowly opened his eyes, her faint form fabricated within the oblivion of his confusion, and finally he sat up on his own, rubbing away a headache and unexplained ashes smeared across his skin.

"What...what happened?" Sef asked quietly, finally managing to get back onto his feet as he used Jade as a stabilizer, staring ahead as Jackie and the others rushed forward. The Enforcers stood where they had throughout the conflict, though looking relieved themselves that Sef was all right and returned to normal.

"Are you feeling all right Sef?" Jackie asked as he reached them, placing both his hands upon the young boy's shoulder to steady him, and Sef blinked several times, his face in a relaxed and baffled expression with his mouth hanging open slightly.

"I...I feel tired..." Sef said in an almost dreamy tone, looking prepared to fall back in unconsciousness once more. "Wait, where are the Demon Sorcerers? Are all of you uninjured?"

Everyone was taken aback by this as Sef looked frantically around with a sudden alertness that opposed his momentary disorientation.

"You're saying you don't remember anything Sef?" Jade asked, though she could tell from the abyss of her friend's expression that he was speaking the truth.

"N-No...the last thing I remember is Shendu's fire coming towards me and then I blacked out. I thought I was going to die, but then I heard a strange voice talking to me and suddenly the heat and fear were gone. I felt like I was suspended in the air for an eternity only to be awakened just now..." Sef explained hastily, his knees shaking slightly as he attempted to keep his balance.

"It was so awesome Sef! You transfo-," Jade was suddenly cut off from her immediate explanation by a Jackie's swift hand over her mouth, who was smiling pleasantly at the boy.

"We managed to fend off Shendu and the others with the talismans. Shendu stropped his attack just before it would have harmed you, but you fell unconscious from the shock," Jackie said, and Sef nodded slightly, sitting onto the edge of the roof barrier and now massaging his temples with a slightly aggravated look. His entire body was pulsating with pain as it had before when Wepwawet had channeled energy through him, though he couldn't explain why.

Jade pulled Jackie level with herself via the collar of his shirt, hissing into his ear angrily. "You aren't going to tell him the truth? Why not?"

"Think about it Jade, Sef is already frightened enough knowing the Demon Sorcerers are after him. I don't think it would wise to tell him of Wepwawet's ability to possess him, at least not yet. If I feel we have to we will in the future, but why interrupt his peace now that the demons are gone for the moment?" Jackie replied, and Jade sulked slightly from her inability to reveal the excitement of earlier but silently agreed. Sef would no doubt freak out if he found that an ancient spirit was able to take control of him at any time.

"I'm just glad you're all okay. I don't know what I would have done if my amulet caused any of you to get hurt, even indirectly from the demons," Sef murmured sadly, leaning back slightly as weariness consumed him.

"Come, we must get back to the shop and tend to our wounds," Uncle suddenly declared, and everyone murmured in general agreement, Jackie helping Sef back onto his feet and guiding the small boy towards the staircase leading back down to the streets once more. The Enforcers had vanished, probably since the presence of police sirens was becoming vibrant with the strange events that had occurred and the panic that the demons had ensued below. Somehow Sef didn't believe he had seen the last of them. Augustus collected the abandoned talismans from the ground, though their positions there had at least supported their claim that they had used them against the demons.

Jade took over helping Sef by having him wrap one arm around her shoulder and wrapping her own under his arms to support him. He staggered slightly, his skin still feverishly warm against her own. Wepwawet's possession obviously had some side effects considering the boy's discomfort, but as they began to descend into the office building below he suddenly smiled, his eyes half closed in sleepiness.

"You know, I think it was his voice I heard, Wepwawet's. He told me everything was going to be okay and that he would protect me," Sef said quietly, and Jade returned his smile with a knowing grin of her own.

"Looks like he was right after all," Jade said as they followed the others down onto the street and back towards Uncle's shop. The darkness of the artificial night overhead began to subside into the evening sky once again.


	17. Nothing is Ever the Same

Jade awoke completely refreshed the next morning, sitting up and running her fingers through her matted and tangled hair as she spotted Sef still wrapped up comfortably upon his bed sleeping soundly. The window blinds had been pulled down the night before and the sunlight filtering in was faint and miniscule, but she could still tell it was nearly time for Jackie to come waltzing up the old spiral staircase and order them our of bed to get to school. She yawned as he eyes adjusted to the thick bleakness around them.

"Oh well, I may as well make the most of the time I have left," she yawned wearily, collapsing back down onto her bed at the same instant that Jackie opened the door into the bedroom with a smile upon his face. Jade groaned and pulled a pillow over her face, turning over and attempting to prolong her time in bed as much as she could.

"Please Jackie, just five more minutes," she moaned wearily, listening as Sef stirred a bit in his bed but didn't awaken even with Jackie's sudden presence. A gentle snoring emitted from the small boy as he continued to sleep soundly even in the pool of light that fled into the darkness from the hallway.

"Actually, I came up here to tell you that we're letting you and Sef take the day off from school to rest after what happened yesterday," he said calmly, and instantly Jade thought it was some sort of joke. Jackie allow them to miss out on their precious education?

"Uncle, Tohru and I have to go by Section 13 and drop off some of the talismans that we retrieved last night, and then we have to stop by the marketplace and pick up some merchandise for the shop. We won't be back until dinnertime so I want the two of you to remain here all right?" he asked quietly, and she nodded even though she was turned away. Satisfied with the simple gesture he closed the door and the room was drowned in the artificial night once more. Jade sat up in bed with an enormous grin upon her face.

"No school, no school," she chanted happily as she sprang up from bed and rushed over to the side of Sef's, looking down to see if he had awakened yet. He hadn't, but that wasn't going to stop her from making sure he didn't waste this entire day sleeping.

"Come on, wake up lazy," she said, shaking his shoulders violently as he finally opened his eyes wide and then began to wipe the sleep out of them.

"Aw Jade, you interrupted a really good dream," he said quietly, sitting up and kicking the sheets off of himself.

"Oh yeah, what kind of dream?"

"One in which I never left Egypt and never had to deal with bloodthirsty demons and a strange Chinese host family," he replied with a weak grin.

"Har har. Come on, get out of bed! Jackie said the two of us could have the day off from school to recuperate after what happened yesterday," she said excited, rushing over to her dresser and pulling out her usual outfit.

"Really, we get the whole day off?" he asked cheerfully, sliding sideways off the bed and landing in a collected heap upon the ground with a disoriented smile upon his face.

"Yeah, now hurry up and get changed and we can go downstairs and get ourselves some breakfast. I'm starved," she said, closing herself into the closet to change as Sef hastily did as well out in the bedroom. Neither of them wanted to waste a single minute of this unexpected holiday after the frightening events of just last night. Once both of them were complete they rushed down the spiral staircase, Sef walking carefully down every ironclad step while Jade leapt over the edge carelessly and landed upon the faded carpet below with an adventurous smile.

"This is great! Now's our chance to 'examine' all of Uncle's things while he's away," she conspired immediately while rubbing her hands together greedily, and Sef groaned and stepped lackadaisically off the last stair and followed her into the kitchen.

"I don't think it's a good idea going through your Uncle's things considering what happened last time," he said wearily, taking a seat at the rickety kitchen table as Jade began to concoct something for them to munch on. He allowed his head to fall onto his clenched fists, staring off into the depths of the kitchen where endless crates of artifacts and store inventory had collected over the years. He couldn't even see the far wall at all, and could only half-make out a barren door that led into the small and overgrown backyard of the shop.

"Do you like your eggs sunny side up or down?" Jade asked happily as she cracked several eggs over a simmering flat saucer and watched the butter melt into a boil. Sef shrugged gently and sighed, suddenly feeling far more down than he had when he had first awakened.

"Sunny-side up is fine," he replied quietly, and she commenced making them all in an identical manner until they were cooked to 'perfection' and she served them up on a plate with some charred toast. She set down Sef's plate in front of him and instantly dug into her own, turning to see several pieces of egg and toast in Sef's hair unnoticed by the obviously distracted young boy thanks to her messy eating habits. He hadn't touched his food since she had placed it in front of him or even toyed with it just to please her in thanks for effort it took for her not to incinerate the food she prepared.

"Sef, is something wrong?" she asked seriously, pushing her plate away from herself so she could lean onto the table and meet him eye to eye, but he didn't look up from where his gaze seemed transfixed upon the dusty ground below, as though he were gazing into another realm.

"I...I've just felt so strange even since what happened yesterday. For some reason I keep having these strange memories popping up in my mind, and in the dreams I had last night. I saw this frightening dark energy, and the demons were all around me...but I wasn't afraid. I wasn't afraid at all like I had been last evening when I thought I was going to die, that we were all going to perish in their wrath. I just feel so bad that my amulet got us all into this entire mess," he sighed, slowly sulking onto the table until his chin rested upon his folded arms and his cold meal was forced away.

"Don't blame yourself Sef. How could you have known the truth about your amulet?" she asked subtly, though she was a bit unnerved by the dark eye unblinkingly staring at her from the shimmering segment of alabaster. It seemed far more life-like, especially ever since she had looked into Wepwawet's own cobalt eyes.

"I just wish I had been able to do more, but all I could do was hold off the demons for a short while longer with that lightning ruse I thought up. I mean if it wasn't for you and Jackie and the others all coming to my aid, I know that I would have been killed..." Sef cut off, burying his face into his arms.

"Sef, we couldn't have just left you hangin'. Don't worry, we'll get those demons one day you'll see," she attempted to encourage him, but he simply looked up, his cheeks tear-stricken and his expression livid though the anger was all directed upon himself.

"Yeah, and then you'll all be in danger again. I just don't understand, it seems like no matter where I go I bring pain and misery. I must be cursed..." he sighed, resting his head onto the table once more.

"Sef, you shouldn't be so hard on yourself. Just because Shendu and the others got away doesn't mean it's your fault. In fact, it was kind of mine..." she mumbled the last statement as she wrapped one arm around his shoulders to comfort him.

"What was that last thing you said?"

"Nothing, nothing."

"Perhaps you're right. Just because that conflict did not end well doesn't mean we won't be able to defeat them the next time they rear their ugly heads. I still feel terrible about bringing this upon all of you though. You've been so kind to me ever since I arrived and my amulet has brought upon you some dangerous misfortunes," he continued, looking far calmer now but still distressed over the events of the previous night.

"Think nothing of it Sef. Jackie and me have gotten into situations before that make last night look...well...pretty ordinary actually," she said, and Sef giggled softly looked down upon his untouched meal, pulling it back to him and eating it slowly though it was now stone cold and rather tasteless. Jade returned to her own breakfast and they ate in silence for a few moments.

"It's just sad. After events such as what happened last night nothing is ever the same. After you witness something like that you can never forget about it, and it haunts you," Sef murmured silently as he balanced the last bits of egg on his fork and fell back into a rather depressing composure.

"Believe me, you'll get used to it after a few more weeks of living with us, but the adventures I've had in the past have always had their exciting and fun parts to them too you know. Like seeing the different artifacts and the spells cast on them and the things that they can do. And school will get much better too, we'll-" Jade began, but Sef cut her off before she could speak any further.

"Oh no! I forgot all about that book report the teacher wanted us to have completed for tomorrow!" Sef suddenly said, but Jade couldn't see the relevance of his concern.

"Chill Sef, we'll just tell her we both got sick and couldn't get it done," she responded simply, but Sef still looked worried.

"I'd feel better though if we could run down to the library and I could get a book picked out. I should at least have something ready to prove I didn't completely ignore the assignment," he said, and Jade sighed and stood, collecting up the two dishes to toss them into the cluttered sink.

"Geez, you Egyptians all must be straight A students to be worrying about a book report you haven't even been given the time to complete with what's been happening lately. But I suppose it couldn't hurt for us to go..." she said, suddenly realizing that this was at least an excuse to leave the shop and conveniently forget about Jackie's order, "But we have to be quick. Jackie doesn't like us to go out on the streets by ourselves for long."

"All right then, let's get down there quickly then," Sef said, marching out of the kitchen and seizing up his autumn jacket from the chair where it had been left when he had first arrived. Jade followed only a moment later with an eager smile on her face that Sef recognized as being the one he didn't trust in the slightest.

"Are you sure Jackie won't mind if we leave for a few minutes on our own?" Sef asked nervously, sensing that Jade had other motives aside from helping him select an appropriate novel to complete the assignment.

"Hey, he lets us walk to school by ourselves everyday doesn't he?" Jade said, literally shoving him out of the door of the shop so he had little chance of changing his mind. She swiftly locked the door behind them and made sure she had the key back in tucked away in her pocket before they began to walk to the solemn city library a few blocks away.

"That doesn't seem like a valid excuse anymore you know, considering the last time we walked alone on the streets was when that whole dilemma began..." Sef began to argue, but she silenced his opposition by pulling him along as she had become accustomed to until they reached the towering library five blocks and five dangerously bustling streets away.

"Wow, it's so much larger than the one in the heart of Cairo," Sef said in admiration of the structure with a gaze of uttermost awe as Jade shrugged and saw in it only the oppressive weight of so much _reading. _She cringed at the thought of this but found herself being pulled into the library by an eager Sef, who pushed open the glass doors and looked around happily.

"One of these books has to be interesting enough for me to write a book report on it. C'mon," he said, indicating that she follow as he was guided by the various signs that were posted as to what books lied where. Many of the people were gathered around the public computers that lined the far wall, talking in chat rooms and on AIM and doing anything besides reading and research as was expected. Sef, however, realized that he had to climb to the top of the old-fashioned library if he wanted to find an appropriate book.

"What are you thinking of reading? The teacher said it could be on anything we wanted, fiction or non-fiction, as long as it isn't comics or magazines or something like that," Jade asked curiously, noticing as they climbed many staircases until they reached the final floor of the library. They were forced to keep their voices low since the center of the floor was divided into small brightly lit study rooms filled to the brim with college students preparing for upcoming exams. Shelves upon shelves of books aligned the area outside of these rooms however, and they began browsing potential subjects and books that could make for an interesting report.

"Well, I was thinking maybe doing a bit more research on sorcery since it's been interceding into my life lately. Hmm, there was a book I happened across once before that I'm curious to find," Sef said, examining the various shelves with darting eyes as they passed, and Jade sighed from behind him where she was attempting to search for something worthwhile wedged in between "Vampires: Myth or Menace" and a book covering the basics for performing an exorcism. 'And he's worried about people making fun of him for his height. If he becomes obsessed with this stuff there isn't going to be a lot of hope for him...' she thought humorously to herself as she cringed at the sight of a cloth-bound book that seemed to have been smeared with blood from its authentic but uneven coloring.

Sef suddenly spotted the text he was hoping to find, smiling and reaching forward to grasp it. It was a massive book, at least a thousand pages thick and dusty with years of neglect. He grasped the edge and began to tug, but once the book had come out just slightly it became stuck and he couldn't pull it out.

Sef growled lowly and attempted to dislodge it, pulling with all his might as Jade sighed and walked away, uninterested in watching Sef attempt to wrestle the book out of place. He raised his feet up carefully and planted them onto the sturdy sides of the old wooden bookshelf, pulling with all his might and little success.

Suddenly his fingers slid from the tattered fabric of the cover and he fell backwards onto the ground with a loud thud. At the same instant several people whispered "Shhh" from the nearby study rooms and he scowled at them a bit angrily as he rubbed his backside and a growing bump surfacing on the back of his head. Sef looked up to growl again at the annoying book, only to see it had been removed and a face was staring back at him through the gap its absence left. He gasped and instinctively retreated, having been caught off guard with the presence of someone else close by.

"So it was _you_ that was pulling on the book and keeping me from obtaining it. Be gone with you, useless children have no use for books of sorcery," the elderly man shouted at him in a raspy hiss, and Sef slowly got to his feet and brushed off his clothes hastily, tugging the amulet back around until it was facing forward again.

The grotesque man suddenly saw it as Sef readjusted it, uttering something under his breath that Sef didn't hear as he turned his attention towards Jade once again, who was signaling he come and see a particularly good book she had found amongst the countless others.

_"The Amulet of Kekewey..."_ the man said in a voiceless and dry utterance, but Sef took off running towards Jade and abandoned his previous quest for the book, hoping whatever she had found would spark a new search for him to follow.

Daolon Wong smiled to himself subtly where he stood, setting the book aside as he watched the boy run to his awaiting friend with unsuspicious expression of happiness.

"You must have done something to betray Fate child, for it has just turned against you..."

**Author's Note: And thus a new adventure begins! I was really glad that I managed to keep the demons in character within my fanfic. In all honesty I've only seen sparse episodes of JCA that had the Eight Demon Sorcerers within it, but it's pretty easy to remember how they behaved. Now let's just hope I can keep Daolon Wong in character as well, considering that poor Sef is going to have a whole onslaught of new challenges to face in the near future thanks to the dark chi master...**


	18. Ambushed! In a Library? Part One

Sef couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss within the library, like there was some sort of presence following him, watching him, but he couldn't see where or what it was. He walked down the lonely aisles of books towards one of the studying areas located in each of the four corners of the building, watching the different types of books that passed. Nothing so far had managed to catch his attention, considering he was still bent upon finding a suitable text to satisfy his curiosity on the strange sorcery he had witnessed the previous night and before even then. But no matter how hard he concentrated on this simple goal, the menacing sensation refused to stop plaguing him.

He felt a strange, sharp pain suddenly arise from within his forehead right above the area between his weary eyes, like a searing hot poker being slowly pressed against his flesh it seemed, but the moment he turned back it disappeared, and he saw the silhouette of Jade's shadow against the bookshelves behind him as she continued to search for the perfect book as well. Sef sighed, partially in relief of not having seen a demon standing there with their element summoned, and in relaxation that the pain was suddenly gone.

The moment he turned away it was back and worse than ever, but he continued to progress regardless of its voiceless warning, watching as the curtains by the windows, once wafting freely in the solitary winds, suddenly drew over the open windows by themselves and fell still though the winds continued to blow. The glass windows slammed shut against the windowsills, some so hard that cracks cobwebbed up the once flawless surface and fragmented his image that was cast against them. Sef felt himself grow pale and cold, beads of sweat suddenly emerging upon his forehead as he backed away and continued to walk, this time at a quicker and more frantic pace.

"Don't allow yourself to become afraid; this library is obviously old, it could just be from disrepair," he whispered quietly and rationally to himself, never noticing as the shadows he left in his wake did not fade back into light, and instead began to seep together into a momentous cluster that concealed itself within the cracks between the floorboards. As he walked the echoes of his footsteps became longer and far more oppressive as they ricocheted off the walls and other things he couldn't identify, and his breathing became erratic as the pain continued unrelentingly and seemed to pierce through his skull and his soul. He shivered slightly and finally retreated into a random aisle, huddling against the far wall and falling to the floor in a trembling heap. His eyes fell upon the title of a book jutting out beside him, positioned a bit more outwards from the rest as he stared at it with a horrified expression.

_ Child Sacrifice: Ceremonies of Religion or Barbarism?_

Only seconds later a shadow fell upon him, the darkness falling over him as he let out a startled and helpless shriek of the uttermost fear. He shrunk back into a quaking fetal position as pure fear consumed him.

"Sef, what's gotten into you?" Jade asked as she approached slowly upon seeing how frightened he was, but he calmed when he realized it was only her and stood once more, brushing the layers of dust from his clothes as he felt relief once again wash over him. Though he attempted to appear as though he had not been afraid, the mask of revealed terror still had not withered from his false expression.

"I'm...sorry. I just have this awful feeling that something evil is nearby. Maybe it's just aftershock, what with the confrontation we had with those demons, but it just won't seem to go away," Sef said as he balanced himself with Jade's help, and they were just beginning to exit the aisle when another shadow fell over them.

Sef looked up and realized it was the old man he had seen through the gap in the bookshelf, the same strange and dark eyes and odd ancient-looking robes he was wearing. He wore a sinister grin on his face that rivaled that of Shendu's, and Sef automatically felt fearful once more. Especially when Jade began to look terrified as well.

"Daolon Wong? What are you doing here?" Jade asked fiercely though with a shaking voice, suddenly backing away alongside Sef, who realized suddenly that they were trapped, corner between the countless shelves of books and articles. Whoever this man was, he had them right where he wanted them it seemed. And Jade also seemed to know him as well, a fact that served to frighten Sef even more considering her past conflicts with the Demon Sorcerers as well.

"Do not worry child, _you _are irrelevant in my plans," Daolon said to Jade, who cringed from his gaze and stepped back once more almost involuntarily. Instead the old man turned to Sef, who gasped and mirrored her motions systematically.

"You boy, however, have something I have wanted for quite some time. That amulet you wear is a rare and thought-to-be lost artifact that possesses within it extraordinary powers. Powers and abilities thought only to be harnessed by the gods alone. And with the Amulet of Kekewey I will be immortal, and the most powerful chi master of all time," Daolon said, suddenly reaching forward and attempting to snap the amulet from Sef's neck, but he ducked out of the way just in time and knocked against the bookshelf, listening as the periodicals and other items tumbled onto the next aisle.

"You will surrender that amulet to me child! Even if I must take it from you by force," Daolon's final words seemed to hang heavily in the air, and Sef watched in absolute horror as the shadows at his very feet slithered across the ground like they had minds of their own, fusing with the masses of other darkness within the library and forming, as he watched with unblinking and widened eyes, into several ninja-like warriors with red, gleaming eyes and blades slung threateningly over their shoulders. They gathered around the master that had summoned them as the chi wizard laughed at their fear. Sef could sense nothing within them, not a trace of human presence or that of spirit.

"Those, those beings...they have no souls..." he whispered to himself as he listened to his breaths tremble uncontrollably and felt his body quake.

"You would be wise to give me the amulet while you are still unharmed child. If you surrender it without resistance I promise to spare the life of your little friend and minimize the suffering you will have to face. Otherwise," he said, lifting one of his hands into the air, "I will drain you of your very soul and essence in the slowest method possible."

Sef screamed, a dry and strangled shriek as he witnessed what lied upon the man's palms. Gaping mouths with sharp teeth, prepared to devour the metaphysical being within him should he not give up an item that could spell doom for the rest of the world if brought into the wrong hands. He felt as though he had frozen to the ground where he stood, but suddenly his mind formulated a plan before he allowed the fear to manipulate his courage.

'If I can get him away from Jade, she'd be safe and able to get the heck out of here. After all, he just said he's only after me and not her...' Sef thought, watching as Daolon and the Shadowkhan began to approach.

Jade suddenly lunged from where she had been standing silently, a flying air kick landing squarely into one of the shadow warrior's stomachs, but she was quickly seized by the others and tossed aside like the expendable variable that Daolon had said she was. Their attention quickly fell upon him again, but by the time they turned back, he was half out of sight by then.

He had wedged himself through the gap between the books he had caused in the bookshelf only moments before, running for his life as one of the Shadowkhan attempted to seize him through the opening and they began their pursuit of him.

He rushed out of the confines of the row only to find that the Shadowkhan were just as swift as him and then some. He found himself using the basic training he had been taught back in his sparse martial arts lessons he had attended, managing not to get caught but in a clumsy and unorganized manner, simply diving in between the embodied shadow's grasps and rushing down the corridor between the shelves.

He turned as he continued weaving between the numerous rows of books and other articles, watching as they came closer and closer with each of his short steps forward. Yet another instance where his restricted height was his downfall he realized angrily. He felt the pain once again return far worse than ever, and in a strangely reflexive motion, he brought his hand back behind him and let out a earth-shaking scream of pain and release.

Suddenly the pain surged throughout his entire body and centered into his hand, releasing into the powerful fire energy he had witnessed earlier when Wepwawet had surfaced from within him. The raging flames tore through the shadows like tissue paper, annihilating a handful of the Shadowkhan with a single blast, but when he attempted to summon another shattering attack, he found his limited energy had been spent in that previous onslaught. He turned and continued to flee as fast as he possibly could, feeling far more focused now that the pain of scrounging the force up from within him had subsided as well.

"Get him you fools, and bring him to me alive! His soul is what powers the amulet and I want it preserved!" Daolon shouted out his orders to his creations, and Sef turned to see their numbers growing as new shadows came into reach and were assimilated into their midst, and suddenly there was an entire army following along behind him as swift as lightning.

Not to mention that Daolon used his chi abilities to create a great many obstacles before him to slow his progress. Books suddenly launched themselves from where they had sat unmoving upon the shelves, swirling into massive cyclones of tattered pages and bindings, walls of various texts being built before all the possible exits so there was little ways for him to escape. All the rooms in which the college students had been studying suddenly slammed shut, separating them from Sef and Jade so no one could come to their aid. They were trapped without allies, and only more Shadowkhan were adding onto the already formidable force of them. The ratio of good to evil was becoming even more imbalanced with every second he found another possible path blockaded right before him, and options were running out.

"Sef!" Jade shouted, attempting to catch up to him from behind where their enemies were amassing, but suddenly from behind her she felt an impenetrable force grip the back of his sweatshirt and wrench her into the air. She turned to see Daolon Wong staring at her with an overconfident smile on his face, his other hand up into the air and opened as the mouth hungered for her inner energy.

"Your friend shall be in my grasp once more, but your chi will still be able to empower me further regardless of your youth," he hissed, bringing his hand down towards her as she struggled against his grip.

"Let go of me! Someone help!" she shouted, the horrible fear emerging from her usual cockiness. But she couldn't fight her way free, and she could already feel her chi being wrenched from her.

"You heard her! Let go!" Sef suddenly shouted, slamming a well-aimed fist into Daolon's face as the old man yelped and fell backwards from the hit. Sef caught Jade in midair and she fell from his hold, setting her gently back onto the ground with a faint smile on his face, relieved to see he had rescued her in time. Jade turned and watched as Daolon was only beginning to get back onto his feet, staggering a little as his head spun from the sudden assault.

"Whoa, nice one Sef," she said with a congratulatory grin.

"I think you're beginning to rub off on me," Sef replied, his once cheerful demeanor falling away as they found themselves, once again, trapped. Shadowkhan took up nearly the entire corridor, and they would find little flaws in the shield of darkness laid all around them. It was like finding themselves caught in the middle of a bleak tempest that went on forever, a sea of crimson eyes staring back hatefully and apathetically.

"I will make sure that extracting your soul shall be far more painful than I had originally planned!" Daolon Wong declared, gesturing in a mystical manner with one hand as the Shadowkhan leapt towards them with excellent stealth and skill. Sef and Jade both dodged in opposite directions with a quick nod to one another, attempting to force their ways out through the countless enemies, but Sef found himself overwhelmed very quickly. The Shadowkhan made sure he was restrained, two at each of his sides locking his elbows and clenching his wrists, and two bowing down to pressure his feet into the floor so he couldn't kick or hope to run away once more. Their holds over him felt like being entrapped within stone.

Jade hadn't fared too well either, considering that now she was suspended up into the air as the Shadowkhan grasped two of her arms as well, letting her legs remain slack as she attempted to kick them unsuccessfully. They stood too far to each side for her to combat them and her aggression to find freedom was entirely in vain.

"Get rid of that infernal girl and make sure she no longer interferes. And as for _you_," Daolon turned back to Sef with a vengeful gleam within his twisted eyes as the Shadowkhan led Jade away, pulling her into the corner of the library where a studying area was assembled and the windows were positioned. Sef shrunk back with the poisoning hate within the chi wizard's eyes as he bore down upon him with a venomous glare.

"In order to use the Amulet of Kekewey a soul must be sacrificed to its power, and that just happens to also be the soul it is connected to; _yours_. If you had simply given in without a conflict I would have made sure that the pain was much less unbearable and the severance of your soul was numbed. But now that you have shown that you are nothing more than a rebellious brat, I will make sure your last moments are spent in worst of agony," Daolon Wong promised in a loathsome hiss, suddenly reaching forward and grasping Sef's neck with a strangled grip. He felt the horrible stabs of the teeth go into his flesh, and suddenly he felt an unnatural warmth channeling through him. He realized, as his skin turned a far paler shade of white, that this presence arising from within him was his very soul being pried from his body in this horrific fashion. His skin was becoming cold and hard as his flesh was turned to stone under the spell and with no spirit to empower it, and the amulet once again burned against his skin as its source of vitality was being stolen as well. He could sense the hungry void within the chi master drawing into it his very spirit and thus the unseen power he wished to obtain.

But his eyes quickly drifted from the haggard and wrinkled face of Daolon until they reached where the Shadowkhan had taken Jade. They were having a bit of a hard time carrying her across the lounging area, what with her kicking and screaming futilely the entire way as they transported her, heading towards the windows as Sef realized in unequivocal horror what they were going to do.

But before he could even shout a warning to her instinctively from where his life was slowly being drained, the Shadowkhan had already smashed through a window with their bare fists and with a simple unceremonious toss had flung her out the window of the third story. Sef could hear her screams ringing into his ears as he watched her form disappear from sight, time seeming suspended in the air and unmoving.

_"No...Jade!"_


	19. Ambushed! In a Library? Part Two

Jade's head was spinning uncontrollably in the rush of terror as she found herself flung out of the window and watched the ground rapidly approach. A sea of hard concrete awaited her, sprawled out as far as the eye could see. She was already imagining herself as a vibrant smear upon it in less than a moment, and suddenly remembered why she had been so afraid of heights as a young child.

"Someone, anyone help!" she shouted at the top of her lungs, instinctively drawing her arms up and around her head though she knew the impact would still bring about her end regardless of this action, listening as the winds tore by and time itself seemed manipulated by her horror. It was almost like she was plummeting through something liquid and abstract, or someone had decided to make time flow slower in order to make the horror of her coming death even more prominent. The last thing she was going to remember was Sef's terrified voice calling out to her as his soul was being robbed from him...

But just as she expected to be slamming into the ground she instead found herself hitting against something softer and warm though still hard, and she let out a choked yelp as she suddenly opened her eyes and realized that she had stopped falling, the window from which she had been thrown an eternity above her.

Four sets of concerned eyes were gathered around her as she slowly reopened her own, and she recognized them immediately with a bit of relief and fear.

"You...want to tell us why you just jumped out of a window?" Finn inquired as he looked up to the single open window of the massive old library, but Jade reacted by lunging out of Ratso's arms where she had been caught in his plummet. She scrambled all about on the ground in an almost delirious panic, pulling her hair and her eyes bulging out of her head with worry.

"I have to get back inside there! Daolon Wong has Sef and he's going to steal his soul and then use the power of the Amulet of Kekewey to take over the world and reopen the Underworld once again!" Jade suddenly proclaimed frantically as she waved her arms and managed to frighten countless uninvolved people walking on the sidewalk, and for a moment the Enforcers were all silent and simply stared at her, taking in what she had just yelled loud enough for the entire city block to hear.

"Uh...who's Daolon Wong?" Finn asked as he scratched his head with a confused expression coming across his face, though unable to deny the fact that something seemed wrong. They could all sense something was indefinitely amiss and was only becoming worse with each second they stood out there without a clue. It was little instinct they had managed to pick up from hanging been the henchmen of an insidious demon for so long.

"He's a chi wizard...sort of like Uncle, only he's evil and uses his abilities to try and take control of everything. And he wants the power of the amulet just like the Demon Sorcerers did, so now he's stealing Sef's soul so he can use this power and then he's going to enslave the entire world...I think," Jade explained hastily as the Enforcers stared down upon her as though she were completely insane, though compared to what they had seen in the past this didn't seem too out of the ordinary.

"Is this some sort of trick Jade? You shouldn't kid around about stuff like that..." Fin began to lecture, but suddenly he was silenced by a piercing scream that emitted form up in the higher levels of the library, high-pitched and in obvious agony. All five pairs of eyes looking up into the darkening sky widened as the cry for help echoed throughout the silent city. Not a noise followed the scream, and it was like everything else had been simultaneously frozen in its wake.

"Or maybe you _are_ telling the truth..."

-----------------------

Sef kicked with all his might, but he was beginning to greatly lack the strength to fight back even slightly. Daolon Wong's progress was slowed by his continuous shouts and consistent writhing, but Sef found himself unable to pry himself free. The feeling of having his soul taken from him felt as though he were suspended before the oblivion of the Demon Realm once more, his being twisted and manipulated to allow its growth.

"The pain will only become worse the more you resist child. Simply embrace your fate and I assure you it will come less violently than you are making it," Daolon spat, though the words didn't diminish Sef's spirit in the slightest. He only fought more diligently than ever, baring his teeth as he mentally called for Wepwawet's power once more. Only silence echoed back through his own mind at this most inopportune time.

'I can't allow him to steal the amulet...if he possesses it he'll be able to control the dark energies of the Underworld itself...' he thought weakly to himself, but the more these words sunk in, the less he found himself able to fight.

His world was beginning to spin in a chaotic dance, forms and colors shifting and mingling together as he began to fall unconscious, only able to see Daolon's piercing eyes clearing through the haze. Memories of the demons were flooding back from just the previous night, of the terror and confusion he had felt being on the brink of death. He had thought it was safe now to at least step outside for few measly moments, but it seemed there was darkness everywhere. The excruciating pain of his soul being extracted began to dull until he was no longer able to feel anything at all.

Daolon watched as Sef finally went limp in his hands, his eyes slowly closing and his once clenching hands falling loosely to his sides. His head fell to the side and he let out his final breath as his soul was completely expelled from his body. A thin wisp of fleeting silver escaped from Sef's slightly opened mouth, his soul suddenly being summoned from its rightful place within him and called into the amulet by Daolon's silent incantations. The disembodied presence of his spirit entered into the pupil of the dark eye carved into the alabaster, now out of reach of all mortal eyes and presences.

Sef's heart stopped beating, his blood no longer coursing through his veins. Daolon let go of his limp body with a dark laugh of triumph, and but the time Sef's body made contact with the floor, his entire form had been turned to stone with no soul to give it life any longer. His eyes were opened from the impact, embodying his last moment of life spent in horror. His mouth was still slightly opened, a chorus of breathless screams pouring out but only to be heard by the lost souls of others.

"And now, the Amulet of Kekewey is mine, all mine, and thus is the power of all of the Underworld is at my disposal!" Daolon shouted victoriously, bringing up the now gleaming amulet into the air and preparing to strung it around his head.

Suddenly there was a flash of orange and blue through the air, and suddenly his wrinkled hands were empty and he was staring off hatefully at a small form standing beside the bookshelves. Jade held the amulet tightly in her hands, smiling cunningly at the haggard old chi wizard.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to take things that don't belong to you?" she lectured sarcastically as her eyes darted around, looking for where Sef was being held captive by the numerous Shadowkhan, but she didn't see his small, trembling form amongst them no matter where she looked. A throaty laugh came from Daolon, who seemed to realize what she was looking for.  
"I'm afraid your little friend was forced to sacrifice his soul for the extraction of the amulet from its original possessor, but fear not. I will simply steal your soul as well and you will be reunited within the Underworld," Daolon said, suddenly approaching Jade as she finally looked upon her friend.

She let out a strangled scream as she saw his form laying on the ground, his flesh turned to stone and his face locked in an expression of immortal terror. The Enforcers had only just reached him from where they had managed to force their way through the sealed library, thanks primarily to Hak Foo's brute strength.

"Uh, kid? Are...you all right Sef?" Finn asked weakly and a bit stupidly as he hit gently onto Sef's rock hard head, shaking his hand afterwards and shivering with the cold feel of the lifeless stone that had once been a child. Daolon looked back angrily once more to see their presence, turning to his legions of Shadowkhan gathered around him awaiting a command.

"Seize them all you fools, and get me that amulet back!" he shouted viciously, and immediately the endless army of darkness around them rushed forward intending to carry out his wishes. The Enforcers all let out choked yelps of surprise but sprang into action regardless of the predicament unfolding before them.

Jade stood frozen as the Shadowkhan approached slowly and watched her every movement, her knees buckling as they gathered around her, their eyes glimmering red in the flickering fluorescent lights overhead. But just as they all lunged to capture her, she found herself literally being carried away by Chow, who had sped in and out of that bad situation in the blink of an eye. The only problem was, now the two of them were cut off from the rest of the Enforcers, who were dealing with transporting a now very, very heavy Sef back to the amulet.

"We'll have to split up. We'll meet you up on the roof!" Finn shouted, helping Ratso in lifting up statuesque Sef so Hak Foo could carry him carefully and once he had a firm grasp the three of them sped off. Chow nodded and instantly ran in the opposite direction, throwing Jade up over his shoulder and leaving her to watch in fear as the Shadowkhan closed in on them.

"Right! Left!" she shouted continuously as they attempted to attack them with various martial arts techniques, and Chow responded to each warning with precise accuracy, dodging each of their moves no matter how few fractions of an inch they missed by. Jade finally wrenched her worried gaze from the countless hordes of enemies and stared at the amulet, attempting to will it to fire the needed flames at the Shadowkhan.

"C'mon, c'mon! Why won't you work now that we actually need you!? Please Wepwawet, you have to do something or else Sef won't get his soul back!" Jade muttered at the simple necklace, but there was no physical response to her futile begging. She sighed and continued watching the Shadowkhan close in, praying that they didn't get caught.

'I wonder what even happened to Sef's soul...'

------------------------

When Sef opened his eyes once again, all he could see was darkness. Endless, cold darkness. It enveloped him and he felt as though he were slowly drowning in it, suffocating under the weight of the massive oblivion, but when he felt himself lying on solid ground, he realized he was staring into some sort of sky.

His body felt battered and weary, and it took him a few moments to even sit up without feeling as though he was going to pass out again. The air was thick and heavy with damp warmth, and the earth below felt oppressive for some reason he couldn't identify.

He finally managed to get to his feet, stumbling and staggering a bit before he finally regained his composure, and that was the first time he was able to open his eyes and not witness simple chaos.

He gasped and looked at his surroundings. It everything he seen within nightmares, except now he was living it. The soil beneath him was black and hard, ashes gathered all around him and lashing by on the wings of unrelenting gusts of wind. In the distance stood mountains of incomprehensible height, spewing molten lava from the open mouths atop them and sparking fires upon any dead plant life around it. The 'sky' he had been look at before was merely the ceiling of the seeming endless cavern he was within, lit only by the flames and rivers of melted rock flowing nearby. Chasms scarred the ground, and steam and geysers shot up at random from them which came within feet of him. He yelped and fell backwards, still taking everything in.

Some of the mountains were harmless and merely black forms piercing up from the ground, and he noticed several small holes cut into the rock, lights within them flickering as he realized they were makeshift homes inhabited by creatures. Shadows cast against the walls confirmed this even at the distance he was away.

He was currently sitting upon a winding bridge lying across an enormous cut into the earth below, total and utter abyss awaiting him beneath, the only physical thing to be seen below being a lithe stream of lava miles into this strange earth, of which he was convinced was not the world from which he had come. The hiss of magma flowing all around him broke his trance, and he got back onto his feet though his clothes were now covered in soot and fragments of shimmering obsidian.

"Welcome Sef to the darkness of the Underworld," came a dark, foreboding voice from behind him, and slowly he turned to face the figure standing at the end of the bridge as he shook violently, the being blocking his path towards the strange and frightening city ahead. He gasped and stumbled backwards once more, stirring up an impenetrable cloud of dust and ashes as the figure began to approach him, two crimson eyes gleaming through the darkness and confusion.

"No...not you..." Sef barely got out, crawling backwards on his hands and feet but slipping many times and listening as their foundation threatened to crumble. The smell of burning substances in the air was making his vision falter once again, but he was still able to see his enemy clearly as he stepped out the shadows and decay with a sinister grin on his face.

"Allow me to be your personal tour guide through the endless corridors of the oblivion," Dark Sef said he reached forward to grasp him.


	20. Close Your Eyes and it's Not so Dark I

"_Wh-What in the world are you doing still alive?" _Sef shouted at the top of his lungs, though regretting it as he was forced to listen to his own panicked voice echoing through the endless cavern. His shouts didn't make his darker half any more frightening than he already appeared.

"Don't seem so surprised Sef; after all, where did you think I would be sent with that incantation Uncle read off? Here is where all shadows and darkness originates and retreats to, the Underworld," Dark Sef said menacingly, waving his arms in different directions as though presenting a new home to an excited family. Sef gulped as the situation seemed only to growing worse and worse with each new development.

"I thought you were _gone_, as if you were never coming back," Sef argued, still remembering the utter horror of having that rusted sword pressed against the flesh of his throat and shivering with the thought.

"Nothing can simply be eliminated, especially dark beings such as I. We must be banished, for we cannot be destroyed. Even if you manage to sever our bodies we can assimilate into other earthly darkness and be revived. So thus I was sent here with the other black souls of mortals," Dark Sef said, and Sef cringed slightly with the tone in his voice.

"I have a hard time believing that you were ever some part of me."

"Everyone has a dark side Sef, no matter how innocent or naïve they may appear. Even your little girlfriend Jade and her family have them; I can see it written in the eyes of everyone. Their concealed pasts, their buried sins, everything evil or grotesque about them can be seen by those like me."

"What a gift. Now how the heck do I get out of here? I need to help Jade before Daolon Wong does something to her or she winds up here with me!"

Dark Sef laughed at this question, his quaking cackles reverberating off the walls so loudly that Sef was forced to cover his ears if only not to become deaf.

"If there was some way to escape this place don't you think I would have already utilized it? No Sef, you're trapped here just as all the rest of us are, and your weak and pathetic human body will easily be torn to shreds within a moment of being spotted by another creature dwelling in the depths of this oblivion."

Sef sighed and decided to abandon questioning his darker half any longer, but he turned only to see Dark Sef had mysteriously reappeared to block his way, still grinning evilly at him as Sef realized that his imprisonment here was about to get far worse.

"Going off? So soon? But I haven't had the time to exact my revenge upon you yet..." Dark Sef said, conjuring up some wayward shadows from the ground and forming what appeared to be a small replica of Sef himself from the metaphysical substance. He watched with a startled gasp as Dark Sef crushed miniature creation of himself in his hand and the darkness dispersed.

"Revenge? You were the one who hunted me remember? If something wasn't done you would have killed me!" Sef shouted in his defense, though knowing how thickheaded he could become sometimes he knew this was going to travel right through Dark Sef. As he had expected, his defense didn't change his dark emulate's mind at all, and Dark Sef began to approach.

"I was your own creation. My intentions are justified considering that you are far too weak to even comprehend the powers you have obtained through Wepwawet, and your physical strength leaves even more to be desired," Dark Sef ridiculed him, and Sef growled angrily as he was insulted, but found himself unable to wield said powers as Dark Sef seemed to have mastered.

"I didn't even want to create you in the first place. It was an accident you even came into being. Now either help me get out of this place or I'll do it on my own," Sef said declared, somehow scrapping up more bravery than he thought had ever existed within him. But once again Dark Sef laughed, this time so darkly that Sef felt his blood stand still in his veins.

"You don't seem to grasp what's to come; I'm not going to aid you or simply ignore your presence here Sef; I'm going to eliminate you!" suddenly a fiery energy emitted from the palm of Dark Sef's outstretched hand, and Sef only just dodged the onslaught against him. He screamed briefly as his leg was injured, red and raw now with burns, but before he could even notice this he was back onto his feet and fleeing for his very life.

The heat was so thick and rampant that it was hard for him to make it very far before he was weary, his entire body drenched with sweat and his flesh entirely crimson with the overwhelming heat. He couldn't hear any footsteps following along from behind him, and for a moment thought that Dark Sef had either decided not to pursue him or just wasn't as swift as him.

But he was sadly mistaken when the black earth before him suddenly severed, and a crevasse opened and nearly swallowed him as he came to a sliding halt at its jagged edge, staring down into the boiling stream of magma streaming far, far below. Steam rushed up and seared his eyes, and his writhed and fell backwards attempting to rub away the pain of the simmering ashes.

Dark Sef hovered high in the air, staring down hatefully upon the being from which he had been born. "You threshed me aside like some sort of plague. How could you simply discard a part of yourself in the manner through which you did to me? I am part of you whether you are willing to accept it or not, but I am far more capable of surviving than you. We wouldn't want to make Mr. Darwin wrong in his theories about the weak now would we?" he added tauntingly at the end, gathering another shimmering orb of some unknown energy in his hand and preparing to bring it down upon the child.

Sef had managed to open his eyes again, feeling the sting of the immense heat that surrounded them when suddenly he saw the gleaming light coming from high up into the air. He gasped and drew back as he realized Dark Sef was preparing to attack, but felt too terrified to even move.

'I think I've just invented some strange, new form of self-destruction...'

------------------------

"C'mon Wepwawet, I know I'm not Sef and don't have the blood of the ancient pharaoh within me but can't you make an exception?" she pleaded, but still nothing came forth.

She was fleeing independently of Chow now, running beside him swiftly as he took sparse moments to block the paths of the pursuing Shadowkhan. Already they had blockaded countless doors and other passages, but the Shadowkhan would simply dematerialize and slither through the flaws of their barriers like they were nearly nothing. Their crimson eyes followed their every movement, and they couldn't seem to shake them off their obvious path up to the roof.

"We can't risk getting on an elevator to the top; they could corner us if we do," Chow muttered to himself, watching as the Shadowkhan simply seemed to leap through the walls they concocted out of whatever lied in their path. Jade agreed; the elevator shaft was teeming with darkness, allowing for far more Shadowkhan to be born.

They instead reached a labyrinth of iron-grating stairs that served as an inner fire escape, running up them swiftly and looking for any signs of their allies. They hadn't seen the other Enforcers at all since they had split up earlier, and she hoped they weren't dumb enough to try the elevator either. Not only was there an abundant supply of shadows for their enemies to emerge from, but the weight of the three of them and Sef the Statue would probably snap the elevator cables.

"Chow, they're starting to gain on us! A super-brilliant plan on how to get out of this would be much appreciated!" Jade exclaimed, tucking the amulet safely into her pocket until it could be returned to Sef.

"I'm trying to think of something, I don't see you coming up with anything helpful right now though!" he argued back, kicking over a large stack of returned books over so they blocked the door. Jade watched as the Shadowkhan seemed to bleed right through the pages of the texts, as though the ink were melting away.

"Wait a minute! Those Shadowkhan depend on darkness in order to survive and multiply right?" Jade said to him, leaping skillfully over an empty cart and feeling the amulet rustle in her pocket. She prayed it didn't someone work its way out of her hold, or the Shadowkhan would bring it back to Daolon and then they'd be in enormous trouble.

"Yeah, it would seem so considering our own shadows have already joined their ranks," Chow said, raising an eyebrow in questioning in what she was insinuating.

"Just follow me, I think I know how we can get them off our backs long enough to get back up to the roof," Jade said, taking a diverted path down a new corridor, and Chow followed almost automatically, simply praying she knew what she was doing.

The Shadowkhan pursued of course, turning into the dimly lit hallway and looking around for them. But their two forms had vanished, and the only thing within the hallway was a few random boxes of ancient books left to rot under layers of dust.

A single mental thought crossed all their minds. _"Where have they gone? They could not have eluded us without the shadows knowing..."_

"Hey Shadowjerks, over here!" Jade suddenly shouted, gaining their attention just as she and Chow thrust the switch at end of the hallway.

Suddenly all the lights within the corridor turned on, ever the fluorescent lights activated during emergencies. The Shadowkhan realized the trap too late, and were all obliterated in the blinding light that followed. With an inhuman screech from them, they perished into the artificial lights.

"Score!" Jade shouted triumphantly, running after Chow as they climbed the final stairs up to the roof, making sure for the hundredth time that the amulet was still in her possession.

They scrambled out onto the roof to see the others waiting for them. Everyone breathed a unified sigh of relief to see that they all had made it, and Jade rushed over with the amulet out, preparing to string it back around Sef's neck.

"Don't worry Sef! We'll change you back!" Jade shouted, about to bring the threads around Sef's throat when suddenly she felt herself thrust backwards. She slammed against the edge barrier, the amulet having been dropped at the initial blow.

She opened her eyes to see Daolon Wong, suspended in the air overhead and scowling down upon them as though he were watching cockroaches scurry across the floor.

"You have interfered with my plans for the last time child, as well as these allies of yours!" he declared, the amulet suddenly shooting up from the ground and landing in his hand. Jade felt her heart drop through the roof below as he placed it around his neck, suddenly grinning darkly upon them as the energy of the Underworld was channeled into him.

"You couldn't wield the power of the amulet because you did not place it upon yourself! But with Sef's soul within its Underworld realm it shall make me invincible, and Wepwawet cannot stop my control over it!" Daolon suddenly proclaimed, and suddenly the sky darkened. In the wake of this, the city was suddenly consumed with Shadowkhan it seemed, forming from the darkness that Daolon Wong was now able to summon. Jade and the Enforcers looked helplessly at one another, now neck-deep in serious trouble.

"I would have just enslaved you like all the rest of the world, but instead I feel more like imprisoning you with your little friend. Say hi to the demons of the Underworld for me!" Daolon Wong suddenly said, and suddenly they all let out strangled screams of agony as their souls were wrenched from them as well.

"No! NO!" Jade shouted, but before she could even more, their spirits had all been torn from their bodies, cast into a whirlwind traveling into the core of the amulet. The last thing they saw was their bodies turned to stone just as Sef's had been, with no soul to give it life any longer.

Suddenly the cyclone died down, and the earth was unusually quiet. With a single wave of his hand Daolon sent the Shadowkhan out to begin the oppression of the human race, commanding them silently not to leave one human free in their wake.

"And thus, the world undergoes an everlasting eclipse..."


	21. Close Your Eyes and it's Not so Dark II

"You cannot kill me! I am your creator! Great, now I feel like I'm trapped in some sort of horror/sci-fi movie or something..." Sef mumbled to himself as death impeded upon him. Even down on the ground it seemed like the very earth was preparing to swallow him into the void.

"How amusing to see you reduce to this, begging for your own life from a very remnant of your being. It is a shame that the amulet was lost to this chi wizard Daolon Wong you spoke of considering what I could have done with it, though his exploits are greatly known in this dark realm and within all others. He has manipulated more than you ever could have imagined Sef, and even if somehow you did escape both me and the clutches of the Underworld, you still would be unable to defeat him, especially with this newfound power he has obtained through you," Dark Sef said, and while Sef knew all of this was more than likely true, he couldn't just bow to his darker half and allow him to obliterate him.

He took off running yet again, this time using every ounce of energy that could be spared without collapsing into an exhausted heap on the ground to do so. Dark Sef merely laughed once more and began to take chase by air, keeping himself all but hidden in the thickening shadows with only his two glaring red eyes to reveal where he was. Sef could feel the heat radiating from all around him like the breaths of summoned beasts preparing to devour him but continued, praying mentally that some creature didn't take it upon itself to try and consume him at this time as Dark Sef had taunted earlier. As a metaphysical being Dark Sef could easily rematerialize if such a thing ever happened; Sef couldn't exactly say the same for himself having never experimented with the abilities he may have gained here.

"Where exactly do you believe you are running Sef? The Underworld extends on and on for all of eternity, so you are going to need quite a bit of energy and motivation to continue this futile escape for much longer. I can already tell you are beginning to falter; the Underworld is not meant for frail and naïve beings such as yourself," Dark Sef mocked from above, but Sef was concentrating too hard on getting away from him to turn back and look for his location.

"Has ever told you before that you are _really_ long-winded?" Sef spat in annoyance, beginning to climb the base of a blackened, active volcano he had finally managed to reach. His hands burnt against the scorching touch of the hardened stone, but he knew he had to continue. Dark Sef merely hovered up the side of it gracefully, his feet slack and just inches overtop the immense heat and pain.

"I am _not _going to let you harm me in any way; I need to get back and save Jade and possibly the entire world from Daolon Wong," Sef suddenly cried out wearily and seriously, falling back down a few ledges to a cliff he reached just moments before. He knew it wasn't the heat that was causing his blood to suddenly boil with the intervention of this unwelcome being. "Jade is my best friend, and I have to get back and help her using whatever means necessary, _even if that means overcoming you_!"

Sef suddenly lunged from the small overhang he was perched upon and dove headlong into Dark Sef, who let out a muffled yelp of surprise as they both plummeted towards the ground. Dark Sef slammed into it first, but Sef arms were woven around his waist where he had seized him to drag him back to the ground below. Sef let out a cry and was forced to pull away, looking fearfully at the jagged rocks now embedded into his bleeding auburn flesh, but Dark Sef was far worse off. His spine was lined with gashes and wounds, and the expression he had on his face was more frightening than any attack he could have brought against Sef at that moment.

"I will not tolerate this insolence any longer! I could have _easily_ smite you from the moment you were banished here Sef Artaxerxes, but I took pity and mercy upon you because I felt that simply destroying would not be honorable for the very being that created me as you have pointed out so many times. But now I see you're nothing more than a idealistic little whelp, and that the only way I will ever be rid of your annoying sentiments and emotions is by annihilating you off the face of both these worlds!" Dark Sef suddenly raised his now cobalt hands into the air, conjuring what appeared to be dynamism that emerged from within his very presence, fueled by his hate and his determination to see Sef slain.

Sef could only resist the urge to cower, knowing that Dark Sef wouldn't indeed halt until he was gone, and he merely stood there, feeling so utterly helpless because he wouldn't be able to return home and help his friends. He could only imagine what Daolon Wong was doing to them even now, and if anything, Dark Sef's arranged end for him would at least relieve him of the absolute guilt he felt for having condemned the entire world to such a fate as he was facing now.

"I'm sorry Jade...I'm just not strong enough..." he whispered to himself, watching as Dark Sef brought back a single hand in aggression and prepared to lash out the force of the attack against him.

Suddenly what appeared to be a rift was cut over where Dark Sef hovered, but at first Sef believed this to be part of his onslaught, summoning energy from an entirely different realm to make sure that the execution was commenced properly, but when he saw the baffled look upon his adversary's face, he realized this was not of his doing. They both watched as it opened slowly but surely, a mixture of illusionary storms and twilight merging until suddenly a whirlwind oblivion appeared, and from it came several plummeting forms, all screaming in an eerie chorus as they poured forth from the unseen dominion.

Dark Sef didn't even have time to brace himself before the disembodied figures impacted him, and he was once again carried abruptly into the ground below beneath a shadowed gathering of the figures, of whom landed in the same unceremonious fashion. Sef was speechless and spellbound; could these strange creatures or spirits been drawn against his enemy thanks to a mingling of his fears and inherit abilities?

As the five figures stumbled out into the light, he was convinced of this.

"Jade!" he shouted, lunging at her with uncontrollable relief to see her, and she was sent flying backwards onto the ground with an equally relieved expression to see he wasn't now residing within the churning stomach of some monstrosity.

"Sef! You're all right! Well, close enough at least..." she said as the both of them got back onto their feet after his outburst of emotion, brushing themselves clean of ash and soot.

"Hey Sef, who's this weird-looking kid we just accidentally crushed?" Finn asked, his once white suit now obsidian as he observed the unmoving figure strewn on the ground.

"Is that...Dark Sef?" Jade said, immediately identifying him by the subtle resemblance he bore to the original Sef and remembering their previous encounter with him, and the Dark Hand members were able to make easy connections between the two considering the similarities between them both as well.

"You mean this kid is your evil twin or something?" Chow asked, shivering a bit already with this new development and wondering if he should be concerned with an evil incarnation of his own within this strange place.

"To make a long story short, he's my dark half, conjured by a Chi spell, banished here by Uncle, trying to kill me off out of vengeance, knocked unconscious by all of you as he prepared to carry this out," Sef said rapidly, watching in sufferable disappointment at the vortex through which they had arrived slowly closed up and vanished completely from sight. It seemed they would not be able to steal away from the Underworld via that route.

"I'm so glad the five of you came to save me from this horrible place. I was beginning to worry about what Daolon Wong was going to do to you Jade," Sef said, missing the presence once more of his amulet as he reached up and found only murky air to comfort him instead of the relic's presence.

Sef knew something was wrong when the nervous and somewhat humiliated smile came onto Jade's face, as though she had done something blundering once again. "Well, you see Sef. The Enforcers saved me from becoming one nasty graffiti mark on the concrete, but when we tried to unite the amulet with your body, Daolon Wong sort of got the amulet back and sent all the rest of us here," she said, and Sef signed and felt all hopes he had managed to retain drop through the ground below where they stood. So much for falling back onto whatever strategy they had concocted on freeing him. They hadn't even come here purposely in the first place.

"So, what exactly do we do now that we're all here? The world is going to be doomed if we don't do something quick," Finn said hastily, feeling equally nervous of their new and barbaric surroundings. Nearby, a geyser shot up spewing steam and startled Finn to the point where he leapt headlong into Ratso's arms with a childish yelp.

"Aw, and I didn't think you cared..." Ratso mocked as he dropped his comrade to the ground and stepped away so it didn't occur again.

So thus another brainstorming session was commenced between the five individuals, interrupted only by Dark Sef's anguished moans from having ended up on the wrong side of both Hak Foo and Ratso in their fall to the unstable earth.

"I just thought of something Sef," Jade suddenly said, reminiscing to before all this had happened. "Daolon Wong said that the only reason he's able to wield the amulet is because he sent your soul here right? A sort of really weird sacrifice."

"That's right, but what's that got to do with escaping and stopping him? My soul isn't too much good when it's being held captive in the deepest depths of all darkness," Sef said with sarcastic drama, feeling the weight of their predicament as the Enforcers engaged in listening to what Jade had to offer. None of them had managed to come up with anything but attempting to locate a fast-food restaurant somewhere within the Underworld to quiet their now rumbling stomachs.

"It's just all this business with Dark Sef; he sent your soul here to empower the amulet, but when you think about it it's only part of your spirit, because the evil was purged of it by the Chi spell like Uncle told us. I think that the only reason Daolon Wong is able to control Wepwawet's power is because he sacrificed a pure soul to the Underworld, not one with _that_ in it too," Jade said, pointing down to where Dark Sef was lying on his side, coughing from the ashes and still slumbering restlessly.

"I never thought about that, I mean it wasn't until after we got rid of Dark Sef that Wepwawet was able to even channel his abilities through me. Maybe it was because the darkness once within me interfered with it," Sef said, seeing this foreign part of himself in a whole new light with regard to their situation.

"Exactly. If we somehow managed to get you and Dark Sef back into one spirit again, maybe it'll disrupt the power of the amulet and be able to stop Daolon Wong from using Wepwawet's abilities anymore," Jade said, and for a moment everyone considered this in silence, especially Sef, who found this almost too ironic for him to bear.

"This is a prime example of a Catch 22 if you ask me, but I guess there's no other choice, even if it means sacrificing who I was before now," Sef said sadly, realizing that the person whom he had been since he had first arrived only days before would soon be lost almost as quickly. "It's somewhat strange, in order to stop a terrible evil I have to reabsorb my own vice back into me."

"Don't worry Sef, the moment that we get the amulet back, we'll make sure that Uncle removes Dark Sef from you again, this time _permanently_," Jade said encouragingly placing a comforting arm around his shoulders though the very idea of this made her feel sorrowful as well. She was about to lose the Sef she had become friends with, and considering Dark Sef's almost immediate removal after he had arrived, who knew how different he would be with the villainous being placed back within him. They both sighed long and drawlingly, thinking about the consequences already with regret tearing at them.

"Just one problem with your theory Jade: how exactly do you think we're going to recombine two separated parts of a soul in the middle of the Underworld without a spell book or anything else to help us out," Finn argued logically in his usual immature tone of voice, cringing as Dark Sef mumbled something about torture in his forced sleep and tried to grab his foot uncoordinatedly.

"We're in the middle of the Underworld; surely there must be someone...or some_thing_...that can merge two parts of a soul back together again, and then we can at least test this idea of mine out. Let's face it guys; we don't have anything to lose at this point," Jade said with a faint grin to attempt to brighten the situation, and Sef couldn't help but feel utterly empty with these developments. He instantly feared for the worse, that he would never be able to return to this being he was here and now ever again, and this thought served to make him feel sickened and instinctively resistant.

But he knew what had to be done. If tainting his soul was the key to ruining the might of the amulet now in the hands of such evil, it was worth giving it up even permanently to save all the innocent lives he had jeopardized. He turned to Jade with a faint smile on his face in return of her own, then stared off into the rest of the Underworld with a look of repressed loss and uncertainty.

"I suppose it's time we begin searching..."

---------------------------------

Section 13 was unusually quiet today, a fact that left Jackie feeling endlessly nervous for some reason he couldn't explain. Uncle and Tohru had excused themselves to the main chamber where the talismans were being placed back to their original holders, the both of them lying down a fresh wave of spells as additional aid in keeping them safe. Jackie had been summoned to Augustus's office to finish the required paperwork in the aftermath of the demon's appearances and vanishings, and what actions would now have to be taken in order to locate and secure them once more in their proper realm. The thought of this left Jackie with a pit in his stomach of the efforts to put to recapture them, but he knew it had to be done, definitely sooner rather than later before they could do anything dangerous or threatening to human lives.

He realized what was bothering him the moment he passed an open window in the hallway; the sky was far too dark to be that of an early autumn's afternoon sky, especially considering not a cloud lied in the darkening atmosphere to take responsibility for this. It was almost like an eclipse was occurring over the earth, but from a darkness that had no physical form to be blamed. This caused the hair on the back of his neck to stand on end, but he continued, trying not to worry about anything else but the task at hand for them this day.

He was just about to reach corridor in which the officials' offices lied when suddenly a thundering jolt forced him backwards, shaking the entire foundation of the massive government building. He was instantly back onto his feet before the echoes had managed to flee, feeling the ground continuing to shiver fearfully beneath his shuffling feet, and keeping the echoes of his own footsteps low so he could hear whatever was going on in the distance. The utter silence that followed was far more unnerving than the event itself, as though time had come to a staggering stop around him.

He stumbled upon a security room but a moment later and entered, finding the guard assigned to it had been knocked unconscious by the unexplainable earthquake that had emerged and then died down from below. He walked up swiftly to the damaged, disrupted monitors, adjusting them so he could look for anything out of the ordinary that could have caused it, an explosion or demonic attack of some kind. The bouts of static and interference made it hard for him to see, only blank forms taking shape before him.

He searched the entire compound but found no signs of a visible enemy at all. He saw Tohru and Uncle still within the main chamber, Augustus standing somewhat spellbound and seemingly disoriented in his nearby office, and guards patrolling the vicinity probably in search of the cause as well. He gave up looking, considering there seemed to be nothing noticeable on the computer displays.

The moment he turned away and exited, the screens suddenly went out and revealed nothing more, but he was too distant now to take notice of their sudden demise.

Jackie knew he had to reach the security room and inform Uncle and Tohru of what had occurred, though he was sure with the massiveness of the convulsion that they had felt it as well. He was baffled to find the thick steel doors leading into the room open welcomingly, Tohru and Uncle standing before the talismans facing away from him.

"Tohru? Uncle? Did you feel that just now? What do you suppose could have caused such an quick earthquake to occur?" he asked, approaching them and resting his hand firmly on his Uncle's shoulder. Suddenly they both turned, and he yelped with surprise and tumbled backwards as fast as he could, halting only when he was safely away.

Their eyes weren't their own, the irises of the eyes turned crimson like drying blood and lacking in any emotion whatsoever. Their expressions held an apathy that Jackie could only associate with the murderous zombies in the horror movies he would sometimes catch Jade watching against his wishes. Their mouths hung open slightly, as though they had little control any longer over their own bodily functions.

"Come Jackie, it is far easier to join the darkness than resist it," they both said uniformly, their voices robotic and layered with another voice he recognized almost immediately. A quick look into the air revealed what he had feared, a menacing form hovering in the air above where the talismans had once dwelled, and now were clenched greedily in the hands of this new oppressor. The wall at the opposite end of the room had been completely torn off, the thick steel lying harmless on the ground and cut neatly from where it had once stood protectively. It seemed he had found the cause of the sudden movement, and the one responsible for it.

"I see you have discovered the fates of your Uncle and Tohru, Jackie Chan. It would be wise if you would just surrender your mind to me and declare your allegiance, unless you want this forced upon you. I wouldn't want to bestow upon you as well the punishment I wrought upon your niece and her little friend Sef, as well as those bumbling thieves that attempted to aid them," Daolon Wong spoke in a foreboding tone, weaving the talismans between his fingers like admiring exquisite treasures.

"What have you done with Jade and Sef?" Jackie shouted angrily, suddenly feeling the protective impulse leap up from within him, but by the sinister gleam in the eyes of his enemy, he could tell there was already nothing he could do to help them.

"Their souls now dwell in the land of shadows, the Underworld, and their bodies lie as useless ornaments of stone where they fell to me. And unless you wish to join them and share this destiny, I suggest you give yourself up before I lose my patience," Daolon Wong said, and Jackie answered by reaching over swiftly and lunging an ancient Chinese shield at him, once displayed in the walls of the room.

Daolon Wong cast it aside quickly, but in the second it took to do so Jackie Chan had disappeared from the room, fleeing as silently as possible through the hallowed walls of Section 13.

"Find him my slaves, and once you have bring him to me so I may keep my promise to have his soul removed for this resistance," Daolon Wong ordered in a hateful hiss, vanishing into a miasmic mist as both Uncle and Tohru did as he commanded and began their search alongside the countless other members of Section 13, who Jackie discovered soon enough were all under the control of the Chi wizard. Everyone was now his enemy, and all their eyes gleamed with the same implanted ferocity that Daolon Wong had placed into Uncle and Tohru to control them. He hid himself swiftly within an empty containment locker and attempted to organize his thoughts and strategy before he dared try anything, knowing the price to be paid for allowing one's fear and apprehension to get the better of them at times. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself and began to organize his counteractions before beginning to his opposition.

"First things first, I have to find some way to stop Daolon Wong, and then I must save Jade and Sef from wherever he has imprisoned them..."


	22. Close Your Eyes and it's Not so Dark III

"Okay, just tell me this: Why am _I _the one who's carrying this _weirdo_ around?" Finn groaned as he was forced to transport a still unconscious Dark Sef on his back and the others got way ahead of him. The three other Enforcers simply smiled deviously at him.

"Well, you are our _fearless leader_ after all," they all said at once.

"So…where exactly are we headed right now anyways Sef?" Jade asked, grimacing as the shifting ashes around them seemed to form sinister faces and forms that watched them progress.

"I know exactly where we're going! After all, I always carry around an extensive map of the underworld in my back pocket," he half-shouted and then mumbled sarcastically, "I'm only going on what I can recall of the blueprints of the Underworld that the ancient Egyptians left behind in their tombs to help guide lost spirits. For living, breathing mortals they sure did claim they knew a lot about the unseen hells beneath their feet."

"This place gives me the creeps. Remind me to say my prayers each day before the take out arrives and to dig that rosary out of my underwear drawer," Chow remarked as a spewing geyser fogged his shimmering sunglass. Their reflective surface seemed almost demonic itself in the monstrous dance of fire all around them.

"Hey Sef, you said that Dark Sef was able to use the powers of Wepwawet while in here; then why is it that you can't? I mean, he is a part of your after all, no matter how much of a jerk he is," Jade asked as they approached the dark city carved into the landscape, holding her arms behind her head in her laid-back fashion.

"I…don't know. I'm starting to think the only reason I can barely control them at all was because he was severed from me. Wepwawet may not be evil by nature, from what I can derive from his concern for me, but the domain over which he has guarded is. Dark Sef is able to control the abilities that can cause only havoc and destruction which Wepwawet uses to regulate the workings of the Underworld, and I was left with Wepwawet's abilities that protect mortals _from_ the Underworld. It's like a double-edged blade I guess, when you look at it that way, with how the powers were divided between the two of us, only now Daolon Wong's distorted my abilities by integrating them with his own dark energy," Sef pondered, cringing slightly as Dark Sef muttered a partial Egyptian curse in his sleep. "At the very least, I'd be able to absorb _his_ dark powers back into me, even if it meant having to revert back to who I was before. Then I'd be able to try and do something rather than sit around and wait for the rest of the world to join us down here."

Jade was eerily quiet after that, especially for its contradicting her usual nature. Sef immediately took notice, but he waited a moment for her to speak her mind. When she didn't, he knew something was indefinitely wrong, and decided to talk first instead.

"Is there something wrong Jade? Well, besides the obvious," Sef asked as he reached up to tug playfully and nervously on his amulet, and sighed when he remembered he no longer possessed it. He would have never guessed that he would miss that ugly little piece of alabaster so much.

"It's just…the Sef that became my friend is about to vanish. Once Dark Sef and you are one again and everything, you're not going to be the same person. What if _him_ being back inside of you makes you hate me?" she said quietly, wrapping herself in a self-embrace and looking ahead bleakly.

Sef was spellbound to the point of speechlessness, a reversal of character on his part as well. They had faced demons, endless Shadowkhan and an old Chi wizard bent on seeing their souls devoured by hellish creatures, and yet he had never seen her looking so worried before. And it was because she was afraid of what was to become of him.

"You know, I didn't really have any friends back in Egypt. They all thought I was too traditional to be any fun at all, because my father raised me under the principles of our ancestors. He even put me through blessing ceremonies before we entered a tomb or chamber that could potentially be cursed," with this comment, Jade laughed and attempted to hide it. The Enforcers, however, didn't hide it at all. Finn muttered something in gibberish in mimic and caused the others to snicker again, and Sef presented them a rather evil glance before he turned back to Jade.

"Listen, no matter what happens we'll be friends. Dark Sef isn't going to change that, belief me; if he tries anything he's going to find himself wandering around my embarrassing memories of my aunts all dressing me up as a girl because they confused my gender," Sef said with a genuine grin, and Jade laughed and seemed to cheer up a bit.

Sef, rather uneasy, wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder, and at the same moment both of them blushed but grinned nervously at one another. Behind them, the Enforcers wasted no time in ruining the potentially comforting moment.

"_Awwwww."_

Sef glared at them again as Finn's eyes suddenly trailed up into the air, watching as some loathsome creature watched them intently from the roughly carved window of a demonic dwelling.

They had entered the city of the Underworld, one of many that peppered the endless plain if they had been able to see it from above. Lava streamed slowly across several roughly-formed rivers, and they were forced to cross them via some rather unstable bridges and dreary arcs of brittle obsidian.

"They feed from fear. It we remain unafraid they will not harm or threaten us," Sef whispered back to the trembling, cowering Enforcers as they crossed the paths of several demons, all of them salivating at the sight of human souls but seeming to almost retreat at the sight of both Sef and his dark emulate.

"I must look more like Wepwawet than I thought; maybe he looks like me when he takes a human form or something, considering he usually has the head of a jackal or wolf in the hieroglyphics," he whispered to Jade as she stared confused at their fear as well, "They seem to believe I'm him; I've heard them muttering his name as we've passed. But then maybe we can use this to our advantage."

"What do you mean?" Jade asked, when suddenly Sef halted and turned back to where the demons stood, silently watching their progression across the barren underworld.

"Hear me oh demons of this forsaken realm! I need your aid in locating an apparition of sorcerous mastery," Sef shouted in the most commanding voice he could muster, and he watched in utter, silent awe himself as the demons not only drew their attention to him immediately, but proceeded to bow to him as well upon his sudden attention towards them. The Enforcers gathered behind Sef as best they could, considering he seemed to be the only one the demons didn't seem prepared to devour.

"If they ask kid, _we're_ your favorite High Priests accompanying you down here who you'd hate to see senselessly devoured," Finn muttered fearfully as Dark Sef let out an unceremonious snore.

A large, grotesque beast of inhuman proportions stood before them, glistening, bloodstained horns extruding from all of its joints. Its eyes shone with a crimson gleam and its breath smelled…well let's just say that they all felt like they were going to collapse at any given moment.

"If you seek the greatest powers of darkness then you must go and see the most powerful of all beings that dwell within the underworld. You must see Ganderyn," the demon said, almost seeming to shudder slightly at the name. This wasn't encouraging for Sef, who was frightened enough by the presence of _this_ fearsome creature alone, and already the monstrous silhouettes of various demons came into his mind as he imagined their 'savior' with a hesitant gulp, though immediately returning to his lordly expression.

"And just who is this 'Ganderyn' that you speak of?" he asked with as eminent a tone as he could gather with his voice shaking slightly. He couldn't exactly blame it on the cold considering it felt like they were traveling through a large, expansive oven.

"He was once a sorcerer who was condemned for his workings with darkness long ago. He is one of the few mortals who are ever banished to this realm, and many fear his power. If you desire something of great power, then he is the one you must go to," the demon said, and their entire group looked prepared to vomit at the stench of the demon's breath but holding back their wish to.

"Thank you for your assistance. Where precisely does this sorcerer Ganderyn dwell?" Sef asked, and the demon immediately pointed off into the distance to a lone volcanic mountain.

"That is where he now lives; he has rarely been seen in the several centuries he has thrived within the underworld, but whenever he has revealed himself he has caused nothing but destruction and chaos," the demon concluded, departing with a swift bow to Sef as they stared fearfully off at the spewing volcano.

"Yeah, that's about where I would imagine a dark and evil sorcerer would live," Chow whimpered as they began to head in the direction of their only possible deliverance.

Sef rubbed his throbbing forehead as they walked across the barren plain towards Ganderyn's solemn lair. "You know, this all wouldn't have happened if I had just chosen to visit Japan instead…"

--------------------------

Jackie had managed to elude being seen by the now entirely possessed masses of Section 13, feeling his heart sink whenever he saw his Uncle or one of his comrades, their eyes cold and unfeeling as they remained mindless marionettes to Daolon Wong.

He had contemplated for the last several minutes what could be done, all while avoiding both the unwilling slaves of the dark Chi wizard and the watching shadows. It only took one Shadowkhan to spot him and suddenly all of Section 13 would be swarming with them. And not a flashlight or candle in sight to aid him either when a dark corridor could have been his passage for escaping.

He assumed that the entire city was experiencing these same transformations, managing to reach a window only to see more people made into mindless slaves, children once playing on the sidewalks suddenly carrying the look of a demonic presence within their eyes, awaiting a purpose from their self-proclaimed master. It was enough to make him both terrified and ill at once for what would become of the world if this were allowed to continue, but so far he hadn't managed to think of anything he could do to reverse what was already in the makings. He had been too busy most of the time making sure he didn't end up like everyone else, and that was a chore in it of itself.

Finally he retreated to an empty containment cell in which particularly dangerous items would be placed, the bright fluorescent lights all bearing down from overhead and keeping the Shadowkhan away.

'What am I supposed to do? I can't just stay in here forever…there has to be something I can do to stop Daolon Wong, or save Jade and Sef, but what?' he thought to himself, leaning against the far wall and closing his eyes, falling into a trance-like state of meditation as Uncle had taught him as a child. It allowed him to think far more clearly when he was in a state of at least partial tranquility, though in a situation like this it was all but unattainable.

"_Do not give up hope Jackie Chan; there may still be a way to save the mortal world as well as Jade, Sef, and their allies trapped within the Underworld,"_ came a suddenly voice, and Jackie opened his eyes only to see someone standing in front of the door into the containment unit.

His first instinctive action was to crouch into a defensive position, until he saw who it was. He wasn't sure, however, if he should feel relieved or terrified at the being.

"_You needn't be afraid of me; I am simply here to help you halt what is happening in whatever I can. But we must take haste, or else the entire world will be consumed and controlled by the energies that Daolon Wong has stolen from me,"_ Wepwawet said, approaching Jackie cautiously as he hovered a few inches off the floor.

Wepwawet looked similar as to how he had appeared in the hieroglyphics, wearing the battle armor associated with his rule over war and death, but his head was not that of a jackal as Jackie would have suspected, but instead that of an adolescent human's. He was tall and well-built as one would expect of an ancient deity, but his ghostly form was uncomfortably faint, and as Jackie watched, he seemed to fade even further into nothing as he waited for Jackie's reply.

"You…you're outside of the amulet? I thought you were bound to it…" Jackie questioned, still not entirely at ease though Wepwawet's voice held no indication of hostility or aggression.

"_I was, until Daolon Wong expelled me from it to harness my abilities." _Now it did.

"I thought you would look more like…well, more like the image that the ancient priests carved into the hieroglyphics," Jackie pondered out loud, recalling from when they had been researching on Wepwawet after his emergence from within Sef.

"_I have not taken that form in quite some time; I find it easier to dwell amongst souls and mortals in a human form so I do not arouse suspicion, especially here in the living world. But I did not come here before you to explain my untraditional appearance; we must put an end to Daolon Wong's reign of darkness over the earth before it becomes too potent to be stopped,"_ Wepwawet said, sounding still a bit aggravated. Jackie couldn't help but notice the certain resemblance the ancient god had to Sef, but then maybe it was just a look that all Egyptians carried about themselves.

"What is there that we can do? Daolon Wong already has control over the city," Jackie said, pointing to the window though Wepwawet had already witnessed the effects of the chaotic powers of the amulet at work. Injecting dark energy into any mortal being often resulted with a being stripped of its soul and mind.

"_Sef must be freed from the Underworld; I am metaphysical and cannot possess the amulet for myself without living flesh, and I can inhabit only him due to my bargain with his ancestor. I know that even right now Sef and your niece Jade are probably attempting to escape as well, but with the demons that thrive within the Underworld, they will have difficultly surviving it alone,"_ Wepwawet said, and Jackie felt the pit in his stomach expand to an emptiness that could have rivaled the oblivion itself.

"What can we do to open the Underworld though Wepwawet?"

"_This 'Section 13' place that were are within, it is a containment place for objects of dangerous and inhuman energies is it not? We must simply locate something that we can utilize, a spell book, an item of dark magic, anything. There has to be something within these walls that can help us accomplish what we must."_

"Let us just hope there is, because it is the only option we have right now," Jackie said, and with a nod from Wepwawet he opened the door at the end of the room and quietly exited, looking down both directions of the corridor to make sure that they were alone before progressing.

'_The spirits of both Jade and Sef are strong, but I am not sure of how long they will be able to endure the tremulous captivity of the Underworld. They do not realize that the longer they dwell there, the more they will become like the demons there themselves…'_

**Author's Note: **Hooray! I have finally gotten the pictures of Sef I have drawn up on ! Please check out the links to them in my profile and tell me what you think of them. (**Warning**: I am a horrible artist…--;)


	23. Yin, Yang and a Gray Area Pt I

"Are we sure we want to ask this Ganderyn guy for help? Anyone that lives in a creepy volcano probably isn't the healthiest things for our souls right now," Jade shivered as they approached their looming destination. Sef felt nauseous from the thick stench of the sulfur, and the Enforcers were still cowering from the dark glares they received from any demons they happened to pass. Dark Sef was now being carried by Ratso after Finn's whining had finally gotten on everyone's nerves.

"It isn't as though we have much of a choice right about now Jade. I mean if you can point us in the direction of a friendlier necromancer with the power to merge me and my dark side back together, then do so now," Sef said, and Jade sighed, knowing he was right and hating it all at the same time.

"Mightly Tiger Cowers from Shadows," Hak Foo announced his feelings once more in his usual way, and no one argued that their surroundings were beyond frightening. From the smoldering stones and ashes, massive statues had been crafted into the sides of the entranceway, watching them as they journeyed into the lair of the unknown sorcerer.

"Well, if it isn't the child masking himself as Wepwawet…_Sef_ isn't it…?"

Sef nearly jumped out of his side but merely ended up jumping into Jade's arms out of surprise, his arms woven around her throat as he looked ahead. All of the Enforcers had intended to jump into each others arms out of fright and ended up colliding with one another, a moaning heap on the charcoal earth below with Dark Sef buried beneath them and letting out an unconscious groan of suffocation.

Jade shivered and carefully set her startled companion back to the ground, and they both watched as the shadow approached, slowly but subtlety walking from the shadows and gently revealed in the sudden, erratic flames that danced from the crevices cut in the ground all around them.

Sef had expected a withering being, decaying from the evil that had conjuring through their being, but instead came face to face with a young adult who looked perhaps a decade older than themselves. Ganderyn however stood rather tall and wore robes of his ancient era, his eyes partially distorted behind a small pair of spectacles balanced on the bridge of his nose. He had long, ashen hair that hung just below his shoulders and was far more kept than Sef's own unruly locks.

"Word travels swiftly through this hellish prison, and now here before me stand the children said to have been banished here. And their bumbling comrades I see as well," Ganderyn said, crossing his arms and looking amused at the sight of the Enforcers getting back to their feet, Ratso pulling Dark Sef back off the ground and slinging him over his shoulder like a hunted animal.

"W-we…we came because we need your help," Sef said, though it wasn't the fierce and god-like request he had been hoping to make. It seemed his fear wasn't going to allow him to masquerade anymore, and considering this individual seemed already aware he wasn't the youthful god, it mattered little.

"You need my help? Hmm, offer my abilities to a bunch of ragtag exiles who dared invade my home…oh it's such a difficult decision to make…" Ganderyn said mockingly, rubbing his chin with a false expression of intrigue. Sef became suddenly angry; their situation was looking more and more bleak by the second and he was poking fun at them.

"Listen, if you won't aid us then come out and tell us. I have to merge back with my darker half in order to save the mortal world, but if you're going to be no help then we're wasting our time standing here!" Sef shouted bravely, though Ganderyn merely chuckled heartily at his fierce words. He hardly had the bearings about him to smart talk to a powerful sorcerer that even demons feared.

"You have more courage than I would have originally guessed, and far more foolishness. But your plight intrigues me; perhaps there is something I can do to help with this 'merger' you have spoken of. I assume that unconscious and scrawny urchin is your better half?" Ganderyn said, indicating Dark Sef.

"I'm going to ignore that comment for the sake of not wasting any more time. So you'll help us?" Sef asked, and Ganderyn simply waved briefly and turned, walking into the depths of his established lair and walking slowly so they could follow.

His 'home' was filled to the brim with horrific objects it seemed, ranging from blood-soaked Iron Maidens to many other ancient torture devices. Jade cringed with the realization that they seemed to have been used recently. Several skeletons were interwoven within the confines of insidious cages dangling from the roughly carved ceiling.

"And to think, all of this could have been avoided if he'd just visited a shrink," Jade whispered into Sef's ear, who repressed his laughter for fear of angering Ganderyn.

They finally entered a chamber at the end of the massive study through which they had passed that consisted of brewing concoctions and a table standing imbalanced in the center of the room. Sef froze upon entering and awaited a command.

"In order to piece you back together I'll need to trace back to the primal magic I learned in the beginning," Ganderyn said, pulling a dusty text from the book shelves and flipping through the stiff parchment pages. "But it involved risk as does any sorcery, and you're no exception by a long shot."

"I understand that, but I'm willing to do whatever it takes to help those who are possessed back on earth. I mean there isn't anything else we can do," Sef said, taking a seat on the edge of the platform and feeling himself shaking. Saying was far easier than doing it seemed.

"Set the Dark One here on the table beside Sef and make sure he does not awaken. The last thing I want is some impish manifestation of evil running about breaking my objects and flasks. For this spell I'm going to need to delve back into my research of an extensive art of magic known as _Kurayami,_" Ganderyn said, and Sef already didn't like the sound of it. That, and Dark Sef's bare feet reeked sitting beside him on the table where he had been set.

"Kurayami?" Jade asked, actually braving standing beside Ganderyn so she could hold Sef's hand and make sure he was all right before this odd procedure begun. Sef seemed grateful as well as terrified with the airtight grasp around her hand.

"Yes, it's a Japanese magic that involves only the purest of darkness but works like a charm on the severances of people's souls. I believe I can distort the spell itself so it will be able to join these two back together physically," he replied. Sef's head instantly shot up and peered from over Dark Sef's limp form.

"_Believe?_ You're putting my life at risk on the off chance you're right?!" He half-shouted before Ganderyn pressed his hand against his mouth to shut him up and then proceeded to push his head roughly back down onto the table.

"If you're done whining I'm attempting to derive the proper spell, unless you wish to end up either dead or in possession of several extra limbs," Ganderyn said, and Sef instantly was quiet, though now shivering about ten times more violently.

"This just keeps getting better and better doesn't it?" Sef asked Jade, who was smiling incredibly nervously in an attempt at comfort. The Enforcers were poking around, observing some of Ganderyn's objects to keep themselves from becoming tense and horrified.

Unfortunately, one of the things they happened to poke was a slumbering dragon, whom had indefinitely looked fake until they had disturbed it. The next moment it was chasing the lot of them across the chamber, knocking over various things as flames emitted from its widened nostrils. The Enforcers screamed childishly and as a group traveled to many hiding places that ended up doused in fire within seconds.

"Ezaryth, down," Ganderyn said with a strict tone without ever looking up from his studies, and the dragon obeyed immediately, stalking away back to its original nest and slumbering once more.

Ganderyn sighed as he observed the damage done by the chase. "You two children seem to be the most mature of your strange band of mortals. How pathetic," he said, suddenly taking Sef hand and protruding a dagger from the folds of his robes.

"Ahhh! What're you gonna do with that?" Sef said, wrenching his hand away and shaking as he clasped his hand protectively.

"It's part of the spell you little whelp. I must make a small incision and gather some of your lifeblood to blend with his," Ganderyn then proceeded to instead pick up Dark Sef hand, using the piercing tip of the instrument to make a cut down his finger. He gathered the blood that poured forth into a glass flask and then turned back to Sef, wiping the knife clean on an already bloodstained cloth.

"Simple and hardly painful. Unless you want your entire world obliterated I suggest you suck it up and hold out your hand so I can do the same to you," Ganderyn said, and Sef gulped and weakly held out his hand, which was shivering as Ganderyn clasped it tightly and then cut swiftly the tip of his index finger. Sef watched as he pressured a sufficient amount of blood from the wound, then corking the mixture and shaking it and turning away.

"Now I can begin with the spell and hopefully get this done quickly before those idiots manage to break anything further of mine," Ganderyn said, carefully pouring the flask into another concoction and beginning.

"You nervous Sef?" Jade asked, peering over the side of the platform and watching as he nursed his bloodied hand with a fearful expression.

"Let's put it this way: I'm this close to wetting myself right about now…"

"You probably should have gone before we came here."

"It was a metaphorical expression Jade."

"Oh."

---------------------------------

Jackie and Wepwawet had finally managed to make it back to the main chamber without incident, avoiding both shadows and the menacing figures that hid within them as Jackie kept himself illuminated in a flashlight beam.

"Do you believe that the talismans will be enough to stop him?" Jackie asked, making it to the containment chamber where they were still untouched.

"I do not know, the magic that he stole from me is more ancient than that of the talismans, so perhaps there is a flaw that can be manipulated," Wepwawet said. "I just wish there was more I could do than simply accompany you. But the only way I could take a physical form previously was through Sef's body."

Jackie was suddenly struck by an idea as he held the countless stones in his hands, fishing one out and extending it towards him for show. "This is the Rat Talisman. It has the power to give life to the inanimate. The only things I've seen it give life to are inanimate objects, but maybe it can give you a temporary body."

Wepwawet observed it for a moment, measuring the energy signals that surged from it and quietly shrugging at the end of his analysis. "It doesn't seem as though we have many options at this point, and the worst that can happen is that it denies me a body and we continue with what we were doing previously."

Jackie nodded and held out the talismans so the rough picture of the creature faced Wepwawet, and suddenly felt a force rising from within it. Jackie and Wepwawet were forced to close their eyes to keep from being blinded by the sudden light that shone from its surface.

Jackie reopened his eyes a moment later when the subtle darkness of the entire compound back in. Carefully he reopened his eyes and saw Wepwawet still standing there, hovering but a few inches for the ground. But this time he found he couldn't stare through him any longer; he was solid and observing his new body with a look of absolute astonishment.

"It feels so strange to have my own flesh once more. My father severed me from my body in order to keep me from becoming too powerful traveling the mortal realm, and when he locked me away my original body wouldn't have been able to withstand the Underworld for very long," Wepwawet said, finally drifting to where he stood erect on the floor instead of levitating.

"While I'm glad you've found something to be thankful for, we still have the situation of rescuing Jade and Sef as well as the rest of the world," Jackie said, and Wepwawet nodded, still smiling faintly when something suddenly came over him.

His body went stiff with tension as his eyes suddenly scanned the room with an almost animalistic manner. "It seems we have another problem…"

"What? What is it?" Jackie said, looking around as well but seeing nothing anywhere in the confines of the massive chamber. He had expected to see an entire army of their possessed friends marching towards them.

"I can smell a demon nearby…"

"The demon sorcerers? Have they returned?" Jackie asked frantically, barely able to even hold on to the talismans as the panic arose from within him.

"No, it is but one I can sense," Wepwawet said, suddenly transfixed on a figure approaching from the darkness of the adjacent hallway. "He was originally imprisoned here but the chaos has managed to set him free. I've been able to feel his presence the entire time but the prison cells have all been deactivated."

"You spoiled my entrance. I was hoping on getting to those talismans before the two of you did, but I would like to see how a mere mortal and a weakened god will protect them," Drago said, walking out into the flickering overhead lights with a sinister grin.


	24. Yin, Yang and a Gray Area Pt II

"Wait!" Sef suddenly shouted, shooting up from the cold, rough platform and staring Ganderyn fearfully in the eyes. "Will I be able to keep the darkness within me dormant once he has been placed back into me, or is there a risk of him taking control of me and becoming the dominant force behind my actions?" He had to ask this one, if only to give himself closure before he returned to the state he had been in before his first fateful night with the Chans.

"There truly is no way that I can derive an answer to that Sef, it depends solely on your own willpower and strength. It is for you to judge: was he in control before you released him?" Ganderyn said, but Sef couldn't remember if he had or hadn't. Everyone had some degree of evil within them; heck, even when Dark Sef had been removed he had still been a smart-mouth at times and been sarcastic and rude as well. Maybe things wouldn't be as horrible as he had feared once he was whole once more, and they would finally have a means to act against Daolon Wong once he had regained the portion of Wepwawet's abilities that had been lost to him.

"Are you ready?" Ganderyn finally said, having given him a moment to organize his thoughts before proceeding.

"No, and I never will be. But this is for the best," Sef said, suddenly turning towards Jade, who was clasping his hand to give him comfort throughout what happened. "And I need to protect those who would do the same for me."

"All right, now lay back or else the connection between you and your other self will be broken," Ganderyn said, and Sef did so, though finding himself at great unease with Dark Sef only inches away, murmuring something about torment under his breath.

"It is required that you remain completely and utterly still through the spell Sef, or else something could go direly wrong and the consequences could be gruesome. It will be painful considering the ancient properties of this magic," Ganderyn warned, but Sef merely sighed.

"Give me a break, I've been turned to stone, gotten eight different elements used against me, and had 'ancient magic' channeled through my puny, scrawny body enough to find singe marks on my hair. Let's just get it over with," Sef said, and Ganderyn nodded, turning to a certain page in his spell book and beginning the spell with an unbroken expression.

His words were in some dead language that Sef had more than likely encountered in one tomb or another, but it echoed with a sinister tone throughout the chamber, becoming louder and more domineering as it ricocheted off the walls. Sef could feel the sorcerous energy emitting from them, and suddenly his entire being began to radiate dimly.

"I've gotten pretty used to this effect…" Sef muttered sarcastically as he lifted his hand and watched the surrounding energy pulsate, until with the final word the light around both halves of his being suddenly became to brilliant to behold, and everyone but Ganderyn shut their eyes tightly to avoid being blinded. It didn't even appear to effect him in the slightest.

Sef was surprised to feel little change in his being at all. It felt like passing through a thick heat, but when he reopened his eyes and looked down he saw everything about himself was as it had originally been. No changes had been made at all it seemed, and for a moment he was utterly blissful about this.

Until he realized Dark Sef was still beside him, sitting up as well and rubbing his forehead with an incredibly aggravated expression on his face.

"You were supposed to merge us back together again! All you did was wake him up!" Sef pointed accusingly at the sorcerer, who was still reading a passage from his spell book and hardly even acknowledged the boy's outcry for a moment.

"Precisely," was all Ganderyn said after a period of utter silence.

"But you said you would help us! How could you lie when the lives of everyone on the mortal plain are in danger?" Jade shouted hatefully, but all Ganderyn did was smile and offer a hand of aid to Dark Sef, who still looked utterly disoriented from whatever had happened just now.

"Did you honestly believe that I would help a vagabond group of children and idiots? This boy has potential in his dark abilities, I could sense it the moment you brought him to me. So I simply initiated a spell that replenished his strength by using the weak one's own energy," Ganderyn said, and Sef suddenly looked horrified as his eyes fell upon his legs.

He willed them to move, but they hardly twitched under the effort, slack and unmoving upon the table. "I'm…I'm paralyzed!" Sef shouted, attempting to move himself without success.

"An side-effect of the enchantment child, but I'm afraid you won't be living long enough to see it wear off completely," Ganderyn said, suddenly turning to the awakening form beside him.

"Where…where am I? The last thing I can recall are those moronic Enforcers crushing me into the ground…" Dark Sef growled, massaging several aching areas on the top of his head where he had impacted.

"What's with everyone calling us idiots today? It's not like we asked Daolon Wong to send us here," Finn muttered angrily with the Enforcers all in agreement, but Jade and Sef were more afraid of what was now to come with both Dark Sef awake and a new enemy presented before them. "And who are you?"  
"My name is Ganderyn. I'm the one who revived you," the sorcerer said simply, and Dark Sef looked down to inspect his now revitalized and untouched being, though still seeming astonished at the appearance of this stranger.

"And why would you help a nameless apparition such as myself?" Dark Sef questioned, never noticing as Jade slowly removed Sef from the platform, making sure his lifeless legs didn't knock against the floor too hard unless they wanted to be seen.

"Because you possess the power to sever the barrier between this world and the mortal world if your abilities are channeled appropriately," Ganderyn said, tossing aside his spell book and readjusting his spectacles with a slightly weary expression.

"And how is that exactly? I've already tried to release myself countless times on my own, but it has proved fruitless each time I attempted to. What makes you think your guidance will provide any aid to me?" Dark Sef spat, frustrated as he remembered the countless times he had attempted to tear asunder the metaphysical boundaries.

"Because you were lacking in a certain ingredient to the necessary power. It must be done through your other half," Ganderyn said, and Dark Sef's attention was suddenly caught fully, his eyes flashing a gruesome crimson color with the mention of Sef.

"What are you talking about? That brat has little if any power here in the Underworld; his amulet was removed and thus his abilities have been removed from him," he argued back.

"Sef needn't the powers himself. All you must do is direct your powers through his being and against the designated weak point. He is the origin of your sorcery whether you are willing to admit it or not, and doing so will strength and focus them so that they can pierce the barrier," Ganderyn said, and Dark Sef's eye narrowed with sudden realization of what had happened during their conversation.

"They're gone!" he spat, and indeed Sef and the others had vanished upon the first mention of this betrayal.

And even now were making their way back across the bleak and oblivious desert of the dead and forgotten.

"I should have known all that was a trick, a stupid trap we fell right into! And now you're paralyzed Sef! I wish I had said something, I had a feeling that everything that Ganderyn guy was saying was a lie!" Jade shouted, allowing her anger and fear to fuel her legs as she sprinted with the Enforcers through the darkness, her numbed friend in her arms as they fled.

"Do you think they'll bother coming after us? I mean all Ganderyn wanted was Dark Sef anyways right? That was why he healed him," Finn attempted to reason, but his argument was quickly shattered when a loud eruption suddenly came from behind them.

Everyone's head turned to face the stronghold from which they had just departed, Sef's twisted thanks to some help from Jade as his entire body continued to hang loosely, all of them thinking they would see the volcanic summit above blown off and soaring in a fiery blaze. What they saw instead was a furious Dark Sef, bathed in the glow of magma shining from below in the volatile earth. Ganderyn, however, was standing subtly at the base of his mountain home, and a silence came over the lands as though every being were listening and waiting for a development.

"Oh creatures of the abyss, you have been deceived. That boy is nothing more than a mortal child impersonating the god Wepwawet, the human incarnation he once possessed but has been removed from," the sorcerer suddenly proclaimed, and every demon who had once dumbly bowed to Sef suddenly looked prepared to make sure there was nothing of him left. "Whatever demon or beast brings him to me first shall be rewarded. I want him alive; _kill the others_."

"Oh damn…" Sef said vulgarly as they suddenly found themselves running from the nearby demon dwellings with nearly every creature chasing them. "Sorry for my French, but this situation just keeps getting worse…"

"No need to apologize, I'd be swearing my mouth off if I didn't already know that Jackie'll somehow find out and make me suffer a whole lot worst than anything they do," Jade said swiftly as they entered what appeared to be a forest.

Only it was dark and distorted, the 'trees' somehow growing from the barren earth looking like black wires twisting towards where a sun might have shined overhead. Blossoms did line their starved branches, but they were dark as the rest of their surroundings and withered to the point of utter ugliness.

"And my mother said nightmares weren't real…" Ratso muttered as they journeyed under the canopy and into the shadows.

"Your mother's never seen this place before. In fact, I don't think mortals like us have ever been here before this day," Sef said quietly, finding his tongue suddenly hanging slack outside his mouth thanks to the paralysis. Everyone else held in their laughter knowing the time was inappropriate, especially when Sef weakly turned his head attempted to swing it back into place.

"This would be a good time to think of some ancient Egyptian advice or something Sef…" Jade muttered quietly as they slowed their pace, finding they weren't being pursued any further. They didn't know if this was a good or a bad thing, and hoped they wouldn't find out and would just call it luck.

"What do I look like, a telephone psychic or something? My ancestors chose when they want to speak through me or give me ideas, not so many lately since I'm so far from home. Maybe they can't find me here…this place was forsaken by the gods after all," Sef said almost sadly, but the others were too concerned with this predicament to address his concerns for holy well-being.

"You ancestors should have made this place mortal-proof so we couldn't have been sent here to begin with. I thought the gods had total decision over who went where, and now a stupid chi wizard's managed to choose our destination for us. Who's to say Shendu couldn't have done this to us that whole time he bossed us around? And we never took him seriously…" Chow considered, and all four of the Enforcers seemed to pale with this realization.

"Even divine laws can be bent I suppose. Fate isn't a true being, it's a concept. I can be distorted. That's what the elders kept telling me, but like you guys I never took them seriously. Now I'm really wishing I had…" Sef said quietly.

"Enough with the philosophical thinking. Does anyone have an idea on how we can get out of here without becoming either demon chow or captives," Jade said as they finally came to a complete halt in a semi-lit clearing.

"Yeah," Sef said, the only one to notice a figure approaching. "We stay put and see what that demon coming towards us does to us…"

"You're way out of your depth now Wepwawet, for you see my father and his brethren are already on their way here to make use of this situation," Drago said cunningly, taking a few steps towards Jackie and the fleshed god as they took instinctive steps back.

"I would like to see either you or your accused 'family' try to harm me, even if I am mortal for the time being. I still have access to some of my abilities, and that is more than enough to take out a handful of unholy beats such as yourself," the god spat back hatefully, and Jackie hoped that his only ally wasn't the one who started a conflict. Who knew what would happen should Wepwawet be killed in this new form?

"You don't seem to understand; maybe years of imprisonment in the realm of demons has clouded your judgment. I don't want to see you finished off, at least not at this time. My father and his demon kin wish to see Daolon Wong defeated, but we need your aid in order to do so unless you want this world obliterated," Drago said, crossing his arms and giving a look of contempt towards both of them, as though it were poisoning him in confessing this.

"I thought the Eight Demon Sorcerers were powerful beings, and yet they cannot defeat an elderly man who has but a fraction of my powers?" Wepwawet said rather childishly, but his temper was thin with the growing danger. Jackie was still praying that a physical struggle remained nonexistent.

"Even we know that the strength of gods is more mighty than our own, but only a fraction? What has happened to the rest of it? Have you wasted it performing miracles on worthless mortals, or perhaps simply it has withered any from not being used by its wielder?" Drago shot back, and Jackie now hung his head in frustration. He supposed this was better than having two opposite extremities of good and evil combating one another, but they didn't have time for this presently.

"Part of it remains with me, Daolon Wong has control over a portion of it, traces of it were lost when Sef was fragmented from his darker half, but the bulk of my energy remains within Sef," Wepwawet said, and Drago surprisingly smiled.

"That brat is the one who made it possible for my father to release the other demon sorcerers correct? I was going to thank him and then give him a painless death should I have met up with him," Drago said with a cunning grin.

"Your despicable kind seemed to think the same thing; they were going to murder him and would have if I hadn't managed to intervene in time. He nearly sacrificed his own life in order to stop them, and by no means am I going to allow any of you to bring harm to him, or Jade or anyone else he cares about," Wepwawet hissed as he clenched his fists tightly, drawing some of his own blood.

"I've had enough arguing if you're through; we have more pressing matters don't you agree?" Drago said in a slightly angered tone of voice, his eyes suddenly drifting into the air as Wepwawet and Jackie froze and gulped, barely daring to turn and look behind them.

"Well, it seems we've found a rather diverse group of resistors haven't we?" Daolon said with a sly grin, hovering in the air and being suspended by two wings formed of metaphysical darkness. "Ah, Wepwawet, I hope you don't mind me borrowing some of your divine abilities. But they have been quite helpful in getting me much of what I have desired. But I want more of this power, and you have only just said you have more of it still within you…"

"And to think you zapped that other little brat into the demon world, or else you'd be able to drain him of his energy as well. After all, Wepwawet also said most of it was within him still," Drago argued arrogantly, looking the least afraid amongst their group.

"A mistake I will soon correct. After all, Jackie, your uncle is a master of chi energy as I am, and he will also make an appropriate sacrifice for the very same spell he is performing to bring that whelp back," Daolon said darkly, and Jackie gasped, feeling his entire being becoming numb with terror.

"You have but an hour before the ceremony is complete, and he could be anywhere within the city by this time. I've managed to hide him well, but if you find him I'll set him and your foolish friends free of my mind control, and if you don't, then he will take Sef's place in the demon world and I will extract the remaining parts of the energy from him. Good luck," Daolon finished mockingly, suddenly vainishing as the shadows grew from behind him and then began making their ways towards the three figures, who all turned to look at one another once more quickly.

"Come, my father and brethren shall be arriving any moment and will be able to help us find that old man before he finishes the incantation in time," Drago said, indicating an exit and taking off towards it without bothering to wait for their consent. Jackie looked to Wepwawet, who was watching after him with an expression of damnation and loathing.

"Can we trust them?" Jackie asked quietly. Wepwawet turned and sighed, becoming apathetic with hopelessness.

"What other choice do we have at this point? We need all the allies we can gather," the god said, and with a unified nod from both of them they followed after the leading demon.


	25. Yin, Yang and a Gray Area Pt III

**Author's Note:** Sorry about the lack of breaks in the last chapter, I discovered a bit too late that the Document Manager ate my line breaks. I'll correct that sometime. On another note, the chapters to this story are going to be quite long, so bear with me. Much is happening and I've been eagerly writing this lately. On to the next chapter!

"Sef, what are we supposed to do? We can't fight them off for long, if at all…" Sef didn't think he'd ever heard Jade speak so fearfully or negatively, but the situation unfolding around them was indeed beginning to look bleak.

From the shadows stalked creatures that seemed only born of nightmares, loathsome and livid in their hatred of both mortals and gods, both of which they perceived Sef to be. For an instant Sef cursed his ancestor who had brought upon this fate for him, but immediately felt guilty for being so accusing during possibly his last moments of life.

"The sorcerer said bring the boy alive," one of the demons hissed brutishly, acidic saliva dripping from his slack jaw and many rows of teeth gleaming hungrily, and Jade and the Enforcers suddenly looked even more ghastly than spirits. Their group was so scrunched together that Sef was half-suffocated with their backs pressed against him. He could feel and sense their fear, and though his body could barely register it at this time the fear was welling up to its pinnacle of terror. Even as he remained paralyzed he somehow found the strength to tremble violently.

"Yes, a pity we cannot be the ones to vanquish Wepwawet's host, but the rest will make delicious appetizers to the feast of humans we shall receive from Ganderyn," another, more grotesque beats chimed in with a throaty laugh, and Sef found himself hyperventilating as he thought of something he could do.

If he had been able to move his legs at this time he would have ran, ran away from Jade and the Enforcers if only to give them time to flee as the demons pursued him. But he couldn't, and he was trapped in Jade's arms as she held him a bit closer, hoping to keep him safe. He wanted to feel grateful, but at the same time he thought her a fool for thinking that it would make any difference. He wished she would just leave him and save herself.

"Please Jade, you can't risk your life trying to keep me from Ganderyn's grasp; just put me down and run. You and the others can find some other way to escape! Don't get yourselves killed or endanger yourself again for me! I'm not worth it," he said, but he knew instantly that Jade wouldn't do any of what he had requested.

It was a characteristic he had always wished he could find within himself, the strength and courage she possessed. Being picked on and ridiculed had beaten him down into a rut where he believed himself to be a diminutive being both physical and mentally, and when his father had become ill many of the elders had foreseen it as being Sef's doing. Though neither of them had taken it seriously, Sef had been able to see their prophecy was right; Wepwawet's presence had caused Valmont to hunt him down and do whatever it had taken to possess him. Even now he could hear their premonitions ringing in his ears across the oceans and the mortal world down into the depths of this darkness.

_"Now you will be the end of your friends…"_

"You…you can't give up Sef. I never gave up when we were facing the Demon Sorcerers, or when Daolon Wong ambushed us. If I gave you up I…I wouldn't be able to forgive myself for whatever Ganderyn and your dark half did to you, and we both know it would be a horrible fate," Jade suddenly said, and Sef looked up at her, surprised that she had even regarded his words in this situation. The demons began to approach, looking impatient to carry out the gruesome fates they had chosen for them. "You need to believe in yourself more. You keep thinking that the only reason you were able to stand up for yourself was through Wepwawet's abilities. And you keep thinking that without him you're powerless. But I know better, I've seen the way you've been brave. You almost killed yourself that night up on the roof with the demon sorcerers. You fought them even though in reality it didn't seem one boy could stand up to them. So why now do you want to give up? We stood up to them, now this time leave it to us," Jade finally concluded, suddenly gaining the attentions of the Enforcers, who looked ready to weep after her inspiration speech.

"Listen guys, I know it doesn't look like we can do much against demons, but then about it: you guys have worked for one for quite a while. Surely you must remember some weaknesses Shendu had, or something that could have fended him off," Jade asked, and it took them a few moments until Finn finally thought of something.

"The light…" he first said, and everyone looked to him. "He hated the light, probably from being down here so long. He did a lot of his business at night, like receiving and delivering stolen items and so on. Maybe these guys have the same sensitivity."

"Jade!" Sef now shouted, and all eyes darted down to him. "I have an old miniature flashlight in my vest pocket! We could try to use that."

Jade pulled out the flashlight, but it was barely longer than her index finger. It didn't seem large enough to provide the debilitating light they needed. She turned to Chow after switching it on. "Give me your sunglasses, we can magnify the light and scare them off," she said, and the Enforcer wrenched off his sunglasses and handed them over, now shining the light into it.

"Let there be light," Jade said, suddenly shining the enlarged flashlight beam towards the demons, and immediately it struck the desired effect. They seemed horrified of it though it had no physical effect upon, but it seemed indeed to blind them and their eyes shut tight. Covering their faces they ran off in different directions, scattering like a herd startled by an echoing gunshot. Jade and the Enforcers laughed after them as Sef loftily swung one of his legs weakly, glad that the feeling was beginning to finally come back.

But their celebration was cut short when Sef's eyes suddenly made out a form standing a short distance away in the shadows, two burning eyes piercing through the darkness. The flashlight suddenly flickered slightly as the rest of them turned to see their newest enemy, and when all eyes had finally fallen upon it, the flashlight died away completely and the abyss returned.

Sef had regained enough control over his body once more to sit up a bit in Jade's arms, staring horrified to where the monstrous being was standing silently and unmoving, as though waiting for a chase until it could hunt them down and devour them. It seemed right when they were about to escape unscathed the situation became horrible

"Please leave us alone, we didn't want to come here. We were sent here by a dark chi wizard back where we come from and didn't want any trouble to begin with," Jade said as she tossed the useless flashlight aside, but the beastly figure's faint, crimson eyes simply blinked lazily and then reopened to reveal a deeper shade of crimson, as though their hunger was intensifying.

The Enforcers suddenly moved, creating a virtual shield between Jade and Sef and their newest enemy, and both children were compelled by their actions. Jade would have thought they'd be the first to cry for their mothers and high-tail it to wherever their feet took them at this point.

"You're going to have to go through us if you want to get to them, and believe me, it took all we had just to keep up with Jade," Finn said with a faltering voice, standing before the others as a leader would and staring down the villain with a bravery unlike they had ever seen in him. "We've seen things just as scary as you, and if we could actually see more of you, maybe even scarier things. But running away has just kept getting us into more and more trouble, and I'm tired of being a coward."

The creature seemed unmoved by his speech but hardly moved at all, instead its expression moving upwards and beyond where they stood, into the abysmal vastness of the forest through they had just journeyed. Sef shivered in the winds that suddenly lashed against them, cold and biting as though they were alive themselves. In this realm, in this horrible world, he knew they potentially could be and held his breath.

Suddenly the creature crouched down and leapt into the air, and Sef and Jade both let out terrified screams at the same time, finding themselves suddenly being protected once more by the Enforcers as they gathered into an ironclad circle around them and shut their eyes, not wishing to see the fates of the others when the beast descended upon them and smite them all.

But they heard a loud, thundering thud ahead of them, off where the monstrosity had been staring, and all looked up to see the demon attacking other apparitions that had obviously been approaching them from behind. The Enforcers shoved several hands over Jade's and Sef's eyes to shield them from the carnage, and closed their own as well.

"And I thought rated R movies were getting gorier…" Finn remarked as an unsettling quiet came over their group once more, and the slaughter before them ended. They reopened their eyes to see the demon once more facing them, now with a rainbow of different bloods down its front as it once again turned to them with an unfeeling stare.

"Are the six of you going to remain there staring at me and be devoured? There are more of those creatures coming at this moment," came a deep, roaring voice from the beast, and for a moment they retreated once more only to see the apparition wasn't coming closer at all. Instead, he seemed to be waiting for them.

"Wait…aren't you going to devour us and then take Sef to Ganderyn to get whatever reward he's offering?" Jade asked, and this time all sets of hands slapped over her mouth alone, even Sef's weakened hands as he felt himself growing stronger with each passing moment.

"Sure Jade, give him ideas," Sef whispered in a fearful hiss as the demon approached, finally walking into the faint light so they could make out what he looked like.

"You need not fear me…" the creature said, walking into the light so they could finally unveil him.

He was fearsome, blood-red skin and piercing eyes. He had fangs that delved from his mouth and hung down, glistening in the faint light that came from some unknown source overhead. The demon's head was topped with matted black hair, and his build was very similar to a human's except for a slight hunch that gave him a more animalistic appearance. He wore only torn clothing where was necessary, and the moment he could be seen everyone was suddenly several yards away, huddled in a shivering, whimpering group.

"I said you need not fear me."

"Yeah, anyone would just up and believe what a demon says," Jade said sarcastically, sticking out her tongue at the end of her statement. If this was to be her end, she was going to be her good old mocking self when it happened.

The demon, however, sighed rather than get angry or launch an attack as they had been expecting. "I suppose this is to be expected. You know not all creatures born of the dark embraced it."

"The elders used to say that, it was their argument for worshipping gods that ruled over the Underworld and darkness. But I never thought…but then, I did have a darker god inhabiting my body didn't I…?" Sef murmured loud enough for all of them to hear.

"So it is true that you are the child that Wepwawet was reborn through. His scent is identical to yours," the demon remarked, and Sef grimaced.

"I'll wear more deodorant then…"

"No, it is why not all demons are hunting you. Your aura carries the feel of power that I recognize as Wepwawet's…"

"I would have thought that would mean I'm dead meat, considering everyone else here seems to loath him," Sef replied, though asking for death didn't register as the wisest action in his mind. The others were staring at him as though he had lost his mind.

"On the contrary, I am one of the few demons in this world that have sworn my allegiance to him. That is why I came to your aid; my demonic energy is enough to frighten away many of the lower-class demons here, but Ganderyn and this evil part of yourself are perhaps more than I can fend off for long. We should make haste once more if we are going to keep ahead of them," the creature said, gesturing for them continue fleeing.

"Continue running? I can't even move my own legs right now and both our enemies are fueled by dark energy! And let's face it, we're currently in the heart of all evil here in this realm. They have an unlimited supply to feed off of; we'll never be able to escape them no matter how hard we try or how much we want to," Sef pointed out, and the creature took a moment to answer with this bold statement from the boy.

"I'll hold them off if they manage to catch up. I've promised my loyalty to Wepwawet and thus to you as well, for you are his incarnate," the demon said with what appeared to be a reverent bow to Sef as he remained limp in Jade's arms.

"What's your name anyways? If you're going to serve me and everything I should probably thank you properly," Sef asked.

"My name is Fai Long, but there is no need for thanks. A promise is immortal and I must uphold it," Fai Long said, and with that their group once again began its progression through the frightening forest, unknowing of the dangers that were all around them.

"So Fai Long…what kind of demon are you anyways?" Jade attempted to start up a conversation but a moment later, finding the impenetrable silence more unnerving that the hungered sounds of creatures all around them.

"I am a demon of the fire element," he replied, keeping his gaze forward and poised for enemies.

"Then do you happen to know of the Eight Demon Sorcerers?"

"Of course, they were our reigning leaders before Wepwawet brought order to the Underworld. They were tyrannical beings; they made all demons their slaves and prey, and that is why I was one of the first to become part of Wepwawet's legion. He may have despised demons, but he showed no cruelty to them so long as they remained within this place. Better an apathetic leader than eight oppressive ones. Wepwawet's power was too great for the demon sorcerers to fend off, so they fled into the mortal realm. But their reign there too was cut short with the human sorcerers casting them back into here, and they were forced to remain under Wepwawet's power," Fai-Long explained, keeping pace with them and remaining lucid to the approaching enemies. He could sense they were weaker creatures and would be easily dealt with.

"Well that certainly explains why they hate Wepwawet so much…and me," Sef said, remembering the ferocity the demons had displayed towards him when they had been attempting to annihilate him. His worst nightmares hadn't even been able to prepare him slightly for the terror he had experienced then, and now he was wishing he were back there again. It was better facing an external evil than one you knew had been born of yourself.

Fai Long looked sympathetic, at least as much as a demon could. "Do not despair child, I shall make sure that Ganderyn does not exploit you," he said, and Sef attempted to look thankful his worry was far too great for him to.

"But how are we going to get out of here? The barrier around the Underworld can only be manipulated by Wepwawet, and with him and me separated there's nothing that either of us can do," Sef said, but Fai Long didn't look so sure.

"I heard what the female said earlier, and you really must believe more in yourself. Wepwawet's abilities belong not only to him anymore Sef Artaxerxes, they belong to you as well. You have to tap into their depths, but it will not be easy, and it requires something that you will not wish to do," Fai Long said, and there was an uneasy silence in the air around their strange group.

"You must surrender to Ganderyn."

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"How are we going to get into contact with your father? The Demon Sorcerers could be anywhere around the world by this time," Wepwawet muttered to Drago, watching as the dragon scanned the sky quickly as though looking for something important.

"Don't underestimate me, like humans we have connections to our families as well. A simple maneuver on my part should bring them here to us," Drago said, placing the fingertips of his two hands together and closing his eyes.

Wepwawet was impatient enough to feel tempted to criticize him, but the effects of the seemingly useless pose he had taken. As the silent spell began to take place, Jackie finally stumbled out onto the walkway, curious as to what they were doing.

"How is that…?"

_"Shhh."_

Wepwawet silenced him as the effect began to take place. As Drago stood there motionless a change in the atmosphere began. The clouds above them began to swirl and distort, and suddenly there was a visible gap in them as the evening sky above suddenly appeared.

But before either of them could question the relevance of the gap, Drago suddenly seemed to set himself on fire. Wepwawet and Jackie were forced to back away because of the monstrous heat, but Drago himself seemed unaffected. The flames weaved around him as though he were controlling every fiber of their essence with ease, and without warning they shot from him into the sky, darting through the weak point in Daolon Wong's barrier that Drago had managed to cut.

The flames dispersed into eight different beams of fiery light and look off in parallel paths, heading towards the west as they watched with amazement. The flames disappeared in the blink of an eye, the barrier filled itself in and Drago relaxed, exhaling slowly as he broke the meditative position he had poised himself.

"I just sent a distress signal to them; my father and relatives may not seem the type but we are protective of our dying kind. They will be here in but a short while; their elements allow them to travel swifter than you could ever imagine," Drago said, and both Wepwawet and Jackie were silent as they listened to the winds pick up and the sounds of thunder continued around them.

"Why is the weather suddenly so violent?" he asked, noticing the lightning segmenting the sky in a bitter fashion.

"Daolon Wong's energy is causing the world to slowly decay, and if left unchecked his new abilities will become uncontrollable and destroy this entire world, catapulting it into the oblivion where he sent Sef and Jade," Wepwawet commented, watching as leaves and other light, discarded objects suddenly seemed pulled into the air, vanishing into the thickening sky above. "The process is already beginning. Soon enough entire buildings and cities will be pulled into the Underworld, and the mortal plain will cease to exist."

"Well that puts a damper on all the fun I was planning on having when I finally escaped from the putrid jail cell," Drago said lackadaisically, as though this entire situation were darkly humorous to him, "Now all mortals have been made into slaves and the world is doomed. It figures this all happened the same moment I was freed."

"If this hadn't happened you wouldn't have been freed. Not that it makes any difference anymore; soon all humans will fall victim to demons," Wepwawet said sadly, looking to the ground and clenching his fists tightly. "This is all my doing. I was foolish to think I could remain in this realm any longer. I should have remained banished to my duties in the Underworld as my father commanded me, but I cared for this world too much to ever leave it completely."

"Don't blame yourself Wepwawet, you couldn't have known…" Jackie attempted to comfort him, though Drago's slight laughing didn't serve to help.

"Well, you said you loved the mortal world, now do you love being a mortal? Besides, once the world has fallen to the darkness then you'll be reunited with your host and have all your abilities back. Not that it will matter, considering that there will be no more humans to lead into the underworld once it's within the underworld," Drago seemed to find this hilarious as Wepwawet and Jackie glared at him.

"We'll just have to wait until the Demon Sorcerers come, until then none of us are powerful enough to take down Daolon Wong on our own," Jackie said, and Wepwawet nodded until he suddenly felt a strange feeling go down his spine. He sensed the energy growing stronger, and he suddenly grabbed both Jackie and Drago and pulled them into a nearby alleyway.

"What do you think you're doing?" Drago hissed as Wepwawet let go of them, gesturing for them to be quiet and pointing quietly up into the air. They all looked up to see what he was concealing them from.

Daolon Wong had resurfaced, hovering in midair and facing away from them. Even Drago knew to be quiet at this point, unless they wanted to be discovered and then either enslaved or annihilated. Strangely enough he hovered there silently for a moment, bobbing up and down slightly in the gusts of prevailing winds. The metamorphosis the world was beginning to undergo seemed obvious, but none of them were sure if the chi wizard was aware of what his actions had caused or not.

"This world is beginning to give way to my power, falling into the Underworld it seems. I should have been more careful I guess, but these abilities give me a desire to act upon irrational thoughts," they could hear him saying as they waited silently on the ground, watching up into the sky with unblinking eyes. "I suppose this is the reason humans aren't graced with the power of gods, they would have destroyed their own earth long ago. Perhaps I don't have the appropriate strength myself to harness these abilities. But you do…don't you Wepwawet?"

He suddenly outstretched an arm behind him, never even bothering to look back as he commenced this action. With his palm facing towards them and the swiftest chi spell that any of them had ever heard uttered, a distorted beam of energyquickly gathered against his flesh and then shot out at them, and before any of them knew what was happening the energy struck and dispersed all around them.

Drago and Jackie were thrown to the side by the erupting attack and the shattering sound that followed, having not had the needed time to dodge or defend themselves, and they were thrust against the two brick warehouses belonging to Section 13. Jackie was the first to reopen his eyes as Drago recovered and got onto his feet almost immediately, and he looked on in horror as to what had become of the weakened god.

Wepwawet had taken the full force of the attack as Daolon Wong had obviously wanted, and now hung lifeless in the air surrounded by an orb of the unearthly energy. His body was ravaged with wounds from the piercing attack, and he didn't have the strength either to protect himself from its force. Jackie rushed forward immediately and instinctively, slamming his bare fist against the energy with all the might he could muster, but it did nothing but burn and harm his hand. He yelped and backed away, watching his flesh simmer slightly and small streams of blood emerge. He looked back up in horror to see Wepwawet's body beginning to float away, the other end of the imprisoning energy being towed in by Daolon Wong.

"Now then, I may not be able to control this energy very well but this fallen god may indeed be the key to doing so. All I must do is force him under my control and give him back his energy, and then he will do my bidding for me and keep this merger from happening," he looked back down to Jackie and Drago as he seized Wepwawet's throat and held him loosely in the air. Wepwawet didn't move or resist; he appeared unconscious and unresponsive to anything that was being done to him. "I hope the two of you come up with something soon, or else you as free-minded beings are going to become the sad minority of this planet. You'll be wishing I had allowed the earth to fall into the Underworld when you see what I mold it into." With these last few menacing words, Daolon Wong vanished from sight, taking Wepwawet with him. Jackie had instinctively rushed forwards, thinking he may have been able to do something to retrieve his unconscious ally, but they had vanished into a cloud of smoke as he reached the area below where they had hovered.

Both Drago and Jackie were utterly silent for a moment, still a bit stricken by what had just occurred before them. Then the demon lost his temper immediately afterwards.

"Damn, that stupid Wepwawet had to get himself captured didn't he? This isn't going to make our resistance any easier if Daolon Wong does manage to consume him; in his mortal state it won't be too much of a challenge for him. Wepwawet may be stubborn but that won't be enough to combat his own energy," he scowled, crossing his arms as though disciplining the air into which they had just vanished. Jackie's hand was still throbbing with pain from having tried liberating Wepwawet, and he was becoming livid with how desperate their situation was.

"How are we supposed to fight him now? His power was all but limitless before, and now he has Wepwawet as a hostage and maybe even as a weapon!" Jackie shouted, slamming his once unharmed left fist into the brick wall, and now both his hands were throbbing. He rarely lost his temper or his hopes, but this predicament was becoming too bleak for even him to handle with a straight face. Drago once again scowled angrily, this time at him as his pupils contracted into aggressive slits.

"Getting stupid at this time isn't going to help either you know. Besides, the cavalry's just arrived," he said, and Jackie looked up, noticing he was suddenly bathed in shadow that had not been there a moment ago.

He turned and saw what Drago meant; it seemed a simple distress signal had indeed been enough to call his demon family to his aid. Every one of the Eight Demon Sorcerers stood to his side, looking around and observing what had become of the once bustling city of San Francisco.

Shendu was standing ahead of them, still in possession of Valmont's body and facing towards his son with questioning eyes. "It seems what I feared would happen has indeed occurred. That foolish boy must have lost all control over the god's powers."

"No, this isn't Sef's doing," Jackie suddenly said, considering he was more informed than either of them. They turned their attentions to him and seemed to be resisting their now inborn instinct to attack him. "Daolon Wong stole the amulet from Sef, and then sent his soul to the Underworld along with Jade's and the Enforcers'. Only Wepwawet's spirit was left freed from the amulet, and I helped give him a temporary mortal body using one of the talismans, but now Daolon Wong has kidnapped Wepwawet and intends to control him to keep theearth from falling into the Underworld."

It took a moment for the demons to absorb all this, when suddenly Hsi Wulooked into the sky once more. "These weather conditions don't make well for flying and we've only just gotten back from the Underworld. Wouldn't want to get thrust back in there so soon would we?" Jackie sighed; it was the closest sign of a truce he was going to get from any of them, though he feared what they would do once this alliance had been severed.

"And personally, living in a world under the control of that decaying chi wizard makes me feel ill. He'll probably attempt to manipulate us if we allow him to get too powerful," Bai Tsa commented, and the other demons all had to agree. With the world plummeting into disarray, their supply of vital elements were slowly beginning to wither away as well, making them more and more powerless with every moment they stood around waiting. And if the merger were allowed to complete itself, then there may be nothing left at all, thus ruining any plans for chaos or destruction that they had been contriving during their absence. Jackie, even at this vital moment, still couldn't help but question where they had disappeared to this entire time. But questions such as this had to be put aside until the matters at hand had been dealt with.

"Then we must get to work immediately. Our first priority will be retrieving Wepwawet from Daolon Wong. If we can keep him from possessing the now mortal god then we shall take action again him. We must eliminate the worst of all scenarios first before halting this one," Shendu said, and there was silent agreement amongst all of them. "But do not think that this teamwork goes beyond this struggle Chan. Once Daolon Wong has been defeated you will be the first prey we hunt down."

Jackie gulped but was forced to nod in consent. He had seen this coming but wasn't prepared for imagining himself combating all eight of them once this dilemma had been either avoided or he was forced to endure eternity alongside them in the Underworld.

"Come, time is of the essence at this moment and is slowly dying away. We must take haste if we are going to stop the chi wizard," Tchang Zu suddenly said in an impatient tone, and with another wordless agreement amongst them they opened one of the garage doors into the compound and reentered the stronghold of all darkness.


	26. An Ascending Crisis

Needless to say with Fai Long's latest statement their vagabond group came to a screeching halt, and Sef couldn't help but feel the intense seriousness in the demon's eyes. And here he'd been hoping that his suggestion was some sort of joke or sarcasm.

"You didn't say what I think you just did…surrender to Ganderyn? Fai Long, we just spent time and energy trying to flee from him and the hordes of demons he's sent after us! I'm not about to give myself up when you've come and given us hope! I was ready to do that just a few minutes ago but Jade inspired me to keep resisting. And now you're telling me to accept defeat and allow him to use me?" Sef all but shouted, probably gaining the unwanted attention of every demon within the seething, putrid realm.

In fact they could hear the grunts and mutters of said beasts approaching them, and the splatter of the saliva hitting the ground as they imagined how they would devour the other mortals. The Enforcers looked off into the shadows praying they were further away that they feared they were.

Fai Long continued to look utterly monotone, as though this radical idea had been obvious the entire time. "I know it does seem contradicting and foolish, but you must understand Sef that even with my strength I cannot confront the sorcerer and win. It will only be a matter of time before he becomes weary of having these demons attempt unsuccessfully to capture you before he does the work himself, and I will not be of much use against his spells and incantations," Fai Long explained with a solemn expression, and Sef realized this was all true.

Ganderyn seemed to have initiated this cat-and-mouse game between them and the lower demons just for entertainment and sadistic fun, but soon enough he would probably grow tired of it. From what Sef had been able to see Ganderyn was exceedingly arrogant, and would finally find using his superior abilities would be more satisfying to his ego. Sef clenched his fists weakly and managed now to slide from Jade's arms, though barely able to stand and keep his balance. His returning strength was beginning to slow and falter; he felt tired and strangely battered with the amount of energy that Ganderyn had managed to steal from him in order to revive Dark Sef.

"But…but what if he uses me to hurt you in the end? What good would it do to give in rather than go down fighting? I mean, I know I'm not much good without my energy; I can barely even stand right now. But you said it yourself, Wepwawet's abilities are locked within me and I can still reach them to protect all of my friends," Sef murmured softly, stumbling a bit but managing to stay on his feet. A glare towards Jade and the Enforcers told them he didn't want help and needed to get the feeling back into himself on his own, and they didn't step forward to offer his a hand but looked worried.

"Exactly," was all Pai Long said in reply.

"What do you mean 'exactly'? Ganderyn might do something horrible to Sef! And you're telling us we should just go ahead and let him?" Jade said angrily, watching as Sef did his best to keep standing. He seemed so helpless, and the demon's words were stabbing into her like daggers. She didn't know what she'd do if she was forced to watch Sef's soul be torn apart or manipulated, especially after all they had been through together.

"I mean that whatever Ganderyn plans to do may unlock Wepwawet's abilities. I believe he wants to use Sef in order to find some way into the mortal world, and from what I've seen whatever is happening on earth is currently weakening the barrier between the two worlds," Pai Long said, his eyes slowly climbing to the darkness above, "The Underworld is an unstable realm by nature; in containing so much evil and sin it wavers between destruction and existence. Wepwawet's presence here managed to give it balance, and even with his spirit placed into the amulet, his presence within Sef still managed to keep the forces in equilibrium. But now that he's been removed from Sef and has been fragmented, the worlds are beginning to fall into one another, meaning that they will inevitably merge and become one. I believe that Ganderyn is aware of this and wishes to speed up the process so he can rule over the humans that shall survive the merger, but he needs Sef in order to do this," Pai Long turned to the boy, who stared in horror as he watched the overhead bleakness indeed begin to crackle with heated lightning, signaling the merging forces.

Sef could almost taste the tension in the air that followed, along with the scent of shed blood that was to come. All of humanity would be at the mercy of demons, and there was none to be spared.

"Then…Ganderyn really is our only option. Even if it means giving myself up…if I could somehow get my abilities unlocked or he found a way into the mortal realm again…we could get back and stop Daolon Wong…or at least you guys could…" Sef said quietly.

"Don't say things like that! We're going to beat him together!" Jade shouted, but all Sef did was smile hopelessly.

"Let's face it Jade, my soul may not be able to take whatever Ganderyn has in store for it. But if you guys can get back and save everyone then isn't that sacrifice worth it?" Sef said, suddenly utterly serious but looking angered. "This isn't the time for questioning or false hopes! I'm counting on you guys going on with or without me, and if I don't try saving me; there are countless other lives that need to be freed and preserved."

Sef hung his head slightly but the smile came back and remained, his entire body shaking with the prospect of what he had agreed to. "I might not be able to come back with you, but promise you'll give my body a proper burial. That's all I ask of you if the worst happens."

"Sef!" Jade said, suddenly grabbing both his shoulders and shaking him violently in a rage. The Enforcers looked distraught while Sef didn't look surprised at all. He allowed her to wrench him back and forth as she raged. "I'm not going to leave this horrible place if it means abandoning you here! Not even if it means losing my soul too! It isn't fair, you didn't do anything wrong and you're left to make choices like this…how could I ever live with myself knowing I left your soul to rot here…or be destroyed altogether…" Jade faltered, allowing a few tears to stream down her cheeks. Now Sef was utterly surprised; he had never once seen her cry or look as though she were coming close to doing so; she always had a look of determination on her face that seemed to possess uttermost courage. Now she was crumbling, and he felt worse than before about this decision.

"Jade…I know this is hard. But if I can accept what can potentially happen then you should too. And if losing my soul means keeping yours alive then its worth it, its worth doing again and again. I can't begin to tell you how I feel, here I am still healthy yet it feels like Ganderyn's already tearing me apart. You have to prepare to let go, and as I said don't give a second thought about saving yourself. It wouldn't be worth anything having both of us die and disappeared senselessly…" Sef broke off, suddenly pulling her into a swift embrace that caught everyone by surprise. Seeing her sad made him weep a bit as well, and for a moment they were quiet.

The only thing that shattered the horrible silence was the lightning up above, cutting across the skies with a wrath that condemned their emotion, and finally Sef was forced to pull away, his cheeks still rosy and puffy from the welling tears.

"Sef, if you are going to carry these plans out…then you must do them swiftly before the worlds become too integrated," Fai Long said quietly, and Sef nodded, still staring at Jade as she gripped his vest, unable to let go.

"You'd…you'd better stay alive Sef or I'll find some to bring your soul back and I'll kill you again," she said with a smile, her hands shaking as she finally released the fabric from her fingers.

"Fai Long," Sef said, turning to the demon. "I'm going to Ganderyn on my own. I want you to take care of Jade and these guys. Make sure once the portal is open that they're the first ones through it back home. And don't worry about me; I can take care of myself."

The Enforcers had been so stunned by this entire development that they hadn't said anything, but now they were weeping like children with Sef and Jade's small display of affection. "We're sorry about what happened a few days ago kid! For everything we did!" they blabbed a bit embarrassingly, and Sef laughed nervously with the humility in the air.

"You guys really are something, you know that? Make sure Jade is safe once you've crossed over, I'll catch up as soon as I can," Sef said, and with those last words he turned and began limply slightly towards Ganderyn's castle in the distance, still visible over the treetops of the bleak, deathly forest. They all stood silently, motionless, watching as Sef slowly vanished into the shadows, breaking into a solid run as he rushed towards the castle.

He knew any demons that got into his way would be more interested in getting their prize than devouring them, and he was left to guess the fates of the others as he leapt over vines, fallen trees and other obstacles that presented themselves. 'I just hope I get there on my own. I'd much rather accept defeat than arrive in the arms of some greedy, bloodthirsty demon, soaked in its filthy stench,' Sef thought to himself, noticing the smell of sweat and blood in the air from past slaughters. 'This place is filled with such death and pain; these demons are so murderous that they take pleasure in harming one another than coexisting peacefully. I'd find it sad if I didn't see just how brainless and vile they truly are. They don't even have souls that can truly exist in the mortal realm; they were all born into existence within a world unsuitable for light and happiness.'

He crossed several rivers and sights of where demons had cut each other down in the race to get to him first, their bodies beginning to decay and causing a reek that made him feel ill. The castle was getting closer and closer, and finally he could hear shouting in the distance.

"This is worthless, wasting our time as though foolish demons kill one another into of those disgusting humans. They could anywhere by now and those blundering idiots have chosen to turn against one another," Dark Sef spat bitterly as he stalked about the front of the palace, watching as Ganderyn stood at the end of the drawbridge before his home. The lava passing beneath it cast a monstrous glow upon him, lighting his spectacles though there need be no illusion. His eyes glowed a bloodied crimson with the excitement of what he would commence when the child was captured and brought to them.

"Patience, for now we shall wait and hear for any news on their location. If I can discover where he is we shall go after him ourselves and begin the process to breaking the barrier. Can you feel what's brewing in the air? The mortal world pulled into the deathly embrace of the Underworld, drowned in its darkness. All of humanity will bow at our feet so cheer up a bit," Ganderyn said, "And stop sulking as though you are a small child, it's beginning to irritate me."

"I hate being called by the name of the brat I was born from; I will give myself a new name if only to separate me from that weak, defenseless brat," Dark Sef declared, stalking about as he thought and raged.

"I have one for you then. I delved a bit into Egyptian mythology long ago when I heard of the vanished god Wepwawet himself. In the Book of the Dead, Sef is a lion god who faces towards yesterday, while another lion called Tuau faces towards the day of tomorrow. Tuau shall be your name, for once the Underworld and mortal plain are merged we shall be the kings of tomorrow," Ganderyn said, and Dark Sef smiled a bit, silently accepting it as he shed his old, shameful title.

"Tuau? Well, I'll give you originality on that one, but I'm not so keen about the 'kings of tomorrow' thing," came a sudden voice, and they both looked up to see a small figure approaching from the kicked up dust and grime.

Tuau smiled, brushing some hair out of his face. "You're even more foolish and stupid than I ever could have imagined, walking right back to us as though you'll receive mercy. Though it does save us the trouble of hunting you down."

"Do you think turning yourself in will save your friends? Those demons will continue pursuing them until your friends are resting gently in their stomachs. Once beasts like that have the scent of a human they won't stop," Ganderyn said, suddenly leaping down from the small guard tower he had been sitting upon before the drawbridge, landing just a few yards away from where Sef had paused.

"Ah, I'm not too worried about them. They can take care of themselves, and stupid brutes like the ones chasing us aren't half as smart as Jade," Sef remarked solemnly as though he were unaware of the danger he was in, but the greedy gleam in both their sets of eyes of course told him differently.

"You already know of our plans it seems, perhaps an informant was amongst your group before you returned," Ganderyn began to approach him, and it took every pinch of strength that Sef could muster not to back down, "But I matters little. We need you puny body as a channeling vessel in order to stream a portal into the mortal world and finish this painfully slow process. You see I've been able to sense the deterioration of the barrier since you first arrived here and knew you and Wepwawet must have something to do with it. Now," he said, suddenly reaching down and grasping Sef's wrist oppressively, "You're going to come with us and help nurture this transformation."

Sef didn't fight but did fidget under the sorcerer's tight grip, and Tuau quickly caught up as they began to walk around the base of the volcano. Sef watched nervously as they walked dangerously close to the edge around the lava river. The molten rock bubbled and spewed as they passed, some of it splashing up onto the rock just inches from Sef's bare legs. He flinched and managed to move to the side a bit without any notice from Ganderyn.

They walk for about ten minutes across the barren, scorched plains of the unbearable world, Sef coughing almost continuously from the thick and rancid brimstone and smoke pouring through the air. Ganderyn seemed utterly used to it, and Tuau simply cast the debris away using his energy. Sef was left to cover his face with his T-shirt and allow Ganderyn to tow him wherever the barrier was weakest. He prayed that Fai Long and the others had managed to keep watch over his movements and would know where to be when the portal was first opened. That way they could make their way through and Sef could find some way to stop the process.

"This is becoming tiring, aren't we close to the weak spot yet?" Tuau asked impatiently, crossing his arms and bearing his teeth, acting as though being aggressive would change anything.

"Actually, we've just reached it," Ganderyn said, stopping and gazing blankly into the air. Sef and Tuau looked above as well to see if they could find it as well.

It wasn't hard to notice. A patch of the 'sky' above the Underworld was faintly shining through with a light shade of sapphire, the evening sky of the mortal world partially seen through the gap. Sef thought he could even see distant stars blinking in the small exposed part of the nightly sky, but before he could admire seeing his home again he was violently pushed ahead and shoved as though he were a burden. He stumbled for a moment attempting to regain his balance even with his paralysis still partially restricting him, and then Ganderyn suddenly began to chant.

It was in an ancient language that Sef didn't understand, and frankly didn't want to. The conjuring itself sparked the presence of a demonic force around him, spiraling in a cyclonic fashion as he covered his face with his arms and cried out, frightened outwardly now of what was to come. The darkness was burning at him from within; his sensitivity to dark energy had become far stronger since the amulet had been taken from him, thus removing its protection.

"Tuau, once I have his aligned with the tear, aim your stronger energy attack at him. It should pass through him if powerful enough and segment the worlds further, allowing the merger to happen far swifter if concentrated enough," Ganderyn explained, and Sef watched as his darker half stood next to the sorcerer, smiling as though he were already expecting great job from what he was about to commence. Sef gulped and found himself unable to move hardly if at all. His arms and leg felt stiff, outstretched to the sides so he couldn't shield himself.

"Survival of the fittest was always one of my favorite philosophies. Finally I'm going to obliterate you…" Tuau muttered before he surged a scorching blast from his outstretched hand, and Sef shut his eyes, preparing for the strike.

But nothing could have prepared him for this. He had never felt such pain before, nor heard himself scream so loudly. It was like he was being torn away and then reborn again only to suffer the same fate. The energy literally torn itself through his soul and then up into the sky, meeting the weak point and slowly expanding it. He turned his head slightly to see it growing at the same pace as Ganderyn's triumphant grin, and Sef prayed and waited for Jade and the others to appear and jump through back to their home. But the suffering made it hard for him to remain that way, and he was left to watch the ground and his attackers below as they faded and his vision faltered.

'This is it…my soul really is going to be torn asunder and I'll cease to exist all together. I can't believe it had to end this way…I just wish I knew the others were safe…that they had found some way to pass through the portal…'

Suddenly he couldn't think anymore; the suffering had cut away all feeling and his body felt like a rag doll, hanging limply in the air and suspended solely by Tuau's ability. And that was when it happened, first with the beating.

His heart was suddenly loud and piercing, pounding against his eardrums like listening to bombshells exploding all around him. The energy itself actually made little noise passing through him, crackling and flickering when it reached a rough spot in his own energy, but the beating in his ears was stifling and painful.

But that was only the first thing; suddenly his own energy was resisting Tuau's, yet he was still being held in the air. He watched as a strange, glowing energy suddenly came around him, pulsating in rhythm with his struggling heart as he suddenly found himself solely keeping the portal open.

'Fai…Fai Long was right…this did bring out my abilities. It must have been an instinctive reaction of my energy…' he thought to himself, and slowly the excruciation pain seeped away. Below, Ganderyn and Tuau looked baffled and stunned at his emerging power.

"It seems we've been deceived," Ganderyn muttered, though sounding more intrigued than angry. "He must have known that this could potentially awaken his own abilities, otherwise I don't believe he would have given in to us so quietly."

"That damn brat is really beginning to anger me. Every time I think I've got him where I want him something happens and he's triumphant," Tuau said bitterly, clenching his fists tight enough to draw blood.

Sef didn't have time to waste; he spun around looking for where his friends could be, his eyes scanning the darkness below for moving color and listening for Jade's shouts. He could feel the energy faltering, untamed and threatening to go outside his grasp. If only he had the time to harness it completely before moving on to more pressing priorities.

'C'mon Jade, you have to be nearby somewhere…' he said, his eyes darting back and forward so rapidly that they threatened to unscrew, for below he could Tuau preparing to launch an attack against his suddenly empowered state.

"You foolish child, do you honestly believe that you can fend us off? I won't allow you to escape me this time!" Tuau shouted in a loathing hiss, suddenly leaping from the ground and gaining flight on an updraft that surged from the desert floor. Sef was left unbalanced in the air as he panicked, unable to wrench himself free from Ganderyn's restricting transference beam. 'You have to be kidding me! I finally find power of my own and I can't even use it to defend myself properly!'

"You're going to pay for thrusting me aside as though I were mere waste!" Tuau shouted fiercely as he ascended, bringing back a clenched fist and gathering energy into its center. Sef was panicking but there was nothing he could do to get out of the way in time, and Tuau was moving in rapidly.

"You thought you could simply eliminate me from your being. You are merely the weakness of the past, I will thrive in whatever dark future is bestowed upon the earth, and you shall perish!" he proclaimed hatefully, and Sef gasped and drew back only slightly as Tuau suddenly closed in for his attack.

What happened next came in a blur of fast and sequential events. Sef had expected to receive a crushing blow, could see Tuau's half-gloved fist coming down to knock him out of the air, when suddenly a weak light shined directly onto the wrathful being's face. He shrieked inhumanly and was thrown off balance, and Sef immediately followed the light source back down to the ground where he could see a gathering of figures. Jade was smiling at him, his revived flashlight shining through the lens of Chow's glasses once more as Tuau continued to move about incoherently, seeming blinded in the way he moved.

Unfortunately, he didn't realize he was moving towards the channeling beam, and before either halves of Sef could do anything about it, Tuau had fallen headlong into the crimson being and was pushed forward by its rushing force.

And of course, all the energy was being passed through Sef, and suddenly their original goal was being carried out. Both Tuau and Sef let out a startled yelp before their bodies made contact, and then the beam began to merge them together as an unstable orb of light formed around them. Down on the ground, Jade, the Enforcers and Fai Long all watched in silence. Ganderyn rubbed his forehead as though this were but a slight obstacle and simply watched the process occur.

It lasted only a moment, and when it was finally coming to an end the transference beam suddenly fizzled out and died as Ganderyn contracted his original energy back into himself, and thus the process was halted whether it was finished or not.

When the kicked dust and energy finally dispersed and cleared, there remained only one being, still hovering in the air.

Sef lowered his arms and looked ahead of him. 'Did…did what I think just happened happen? I…I merged with Dark Sef…er…Tuau I guess….'

"Sef! Are you all right?" Jade shouted from down below, and Sef lowered his gaze, smiling faintly as he did so.

"Yeah, and it doesn't feel much different having Dark Sef back…" But just after he had uttered this statement, a burst of energy suddenly emitted from his hands and left two gapping holes in the ground below. He smiled nervously as he held his palms away as though they were disease. "Or maybe not…"

Ganderyn sighed and reached up to rub his forehead, frustrated with the events that had just occurred before him. "I suppose it's as the saying goes, 'when you want something done right you have to do it yourself,'" he muttered slightly angrily to himself, looking back up into the air and raising his half-gloved hands into the air.

"I'll just have to deal with this little intrusion myself," he murmured, and suddenly a weaving sorcerous energy emitted from around his arms, coiling first there like serpents as it was summoned from his own dark soul. Sef was entirely unaware of the danger he was in, and Ganderyn wasn't about to let the opportunity slip him by.

"You are a an annoying nuisance Sef; though I must admit I underestimated your intelligence by allowing you to unlock your abilities and then simultaneously merge with your darker half as you had wanted, but I'm not about to let you cripple my plans on escaping this disgusting realm," his voice was suddenly filled with an stirred hatred, and he was just about to release the energy to devour the child when he saw something move out of the corner of his eye.

He looked back down just in time to he hit away by Fai Long, who had had sense enough to have not forgotten the sorcerer's presence there. He turned back to Sef and the Enforcers as Ganderyn quickly recovered, standing up again and loathing wiping the shed blood smearing down his spectacles.

"You must take haste and leave now Sef, take your friends and escape this place!" he shouted, and Sef turned and nodded swiftly before outstretched his hands, praying that he could now exercise the appropriate control over his abilities with Tuau within him and his own power finally freed. Indeed another energy came of him as he silently called for it, streaming through him and then down around his allies as they stood waiting, smiling up at him in happiness that they would finally be rid of this place.

"Where exactly will be end up by traveling through this portal?" Sef shouted back down to Fai Long, who was continuously making sure that Ganderyn was still too off guard to attack.

"You will materialize back within your bodies at the point in the mortal world where the forces of darkness are at their peak at the moment you begin to cross over. You must remember to seal the portal into the mortal world once you are there, or any creatures of the darkness will be able to travel through it!" he shouted, and Sef nodded, gently pulling his friends into the air within the secure orb he had formed around them, thankful he appeared able to maintain it.

He said but one more thing to the defending demon below. "Thank you for helping us! We may never have been able to escape here alive if it wasn't for you!"

"I thought I had told you already," Fai Long said with a slight grin. "You needn't thank me."

And that was the last Sef saw of either of his ally or enemy, for in that next moment her and the others were pulled in the empowering light overhead and escaped the clutches of the Underworld. Sef was forced to close his eyes due to the brightness of their passage between the dimensions, and when he reopened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the others coming to at the same moment.

Sef looked down, suddenly able to feel his heartbeat and vitals pumping and thriving within him again, almost strange after having spent a while as a lifeless spirit. He was so joyous for the first moment, along with the others, that they hardly realized what had happened to the city in their absence. Then they finally looked all around in absolute horror, their feeling of victory suddenly sacrificed to fear.

"Looks like a lot has happened since I was banished…" Sef barely got out sarcastically, even him finding sarcasm inappropriate at this time. It was especially hard on the others, who's home this had been and was now lying in potential danger.

"The Underworld's pull on this one is beginning to strengthen, I can feel it now. The two worlds are merging and I don't know what to do!" Sef suddenly shouted in a panic, but before he could become too out of control they suddenly heard a faint noise.

They looked down and Sef muttered but one thing as they stared down in renewed horror.

"Uh oh…"

And the damaged roof they were standing on suddenly gave way under their combined weight, metal torn asunder as they were thrown headlong into the near darkness below.

Wepwawet was barely conscious, his vision blurred and failing every few seconds or so. He could make out a few distorted objects around him, equipment that had been lying around the compound gathering dust until it had been cleared away for a place to rest him. Above his unmoving form a fluorescent light provided the only illumination and flickered randomly, sometimes casting the entire room into utter darkness.

"It was meant to be; you really should have surrendered your powers long ago Wepwawet. Even being a youthful god such as yourself these abilities were slowly eating away at you from within, the reasoning behind making yourself dormant within the amulet of Kekewey and sealing your soul until the chosen host came," it was Daolon Wong speaking, standing but a few yards away surrounded by unwilling servants and ingredients for the essential chi spell he was beginning to concoct. "It comes as little surprise that your father Anubis wanted to keep you away from the mortal realm as much as was possible; your energy itself could have torn the bindings between the dimensions if he had remained here."

"And it is your inability to you that energy that is destroying this world; how can you mock me when it is your weakness that is sentencing this peaceful world to an unjust fate?" Wepwawet spat back, though his voice was weak and dry. Considering he was now in a mortal state, the debilitating effects of hunger and thirst were gnawing at him as he laid there paralyzed and his anger welling up from within.

However, his truthful statement seemed to have taken an effect on the chi wizard. "You won't be ridiculing me for long; one spell and you'll belong to me just as all beings within this city already do. You'll be nothing more than a mindless slave," Daolon Wong hissed, and though he didn't allow the emotion to take form, this statement had a profound impact on Wepwawet.

'When you're a god, you just don't believe that anything like this can happen to you. I was wrong all those centuries ago, thinking I could survive my hiding myself and then seizing the body of a host. Sef and his friends might have perished by this time, and it's entirely my fault. I should have just refused Pharaoh Shen's proposal and helped him at no benefit to myself. Possessing Sef was acting no better than Daolon Wong…' Wepwawet decided to confess these things silently, keeping them within the private confines of his mind. Though it felt a bit better to accept blame for some of this, he knew at the same moment that free thought was to be lost to him in but a moment or so. All the preparations had been made, and Daolon Wong stood poised to begin.

"I wish your weak little host, Sef was it? And his annoying friends were here to see this. Their great god stricken down and made into my loyal servant? But alas, I sentenced them to a well-deserved fate; they probably helped feed some starved demon in the Underworld while you remained up here helpless to do anything about it. Well, have my words sparked some angry from within you?" Daolon Wong said, using his roughly formed staff to force Wepwawet's limp gaze towards him. "Aren't you going to do something to save yourself?"

"No, but they are," Wepwawet shouted, and Daolon Wong turned just in time to receive a well-aimed blow to the face, courtesy of Hsi Wu having snatched a sealed container from the floor as he swooped in from an overhead skylight.

Daolon Wong was thrust to the side, hitting against the far wall and letting out a sharp yelp of pain as Wepwawet stared at his unlikely savior. Hsi Wu merely smirked at him as he held the container over his shoulder in a casual manner.

"Well, what are you lying there for? Get up and help us fight them off!" the impatient demon shouted, but the god's anger had not quite been dispelled.

"Daolon Wong paralyzed me with a chi spell that affects divine energy! If I had the ability to escape wouldn't you think I'd have fled on my own by this time?" he hissed back hatefully.

Hsi Wu simply shrugged and tossed his weapon aside loftily. "I thought you gods were perhaps too proud and foolish to do so."

"What do you believe you are doing Hsi Wu? Remove Wepwawet from the enchantment circle!" came a sudden voice, and Wepwawet immediately recognized it to be Drago's as the thundering approach of the other demons commenced across the spanning floors of the warehouse. Wepwawet would have never guessed he felt so relieved to here them coming.

The sky demon turned and realized what Drago had spoken of; Wepwawet was lying in the dead center of a perfectly inscribed circle, ridden and embroidered with strange and frightening images needed to summon the needed amount of darkness in order to ensnare the mind of a god. Wepwawet noticed this at the same moment as well, turning his head a bit to see an undisturbed trail of black dust had been used to mark the metal floor.

Hsi Wu looked prepared to do so, crouching down and reaching towards Wepwawet's useless form when he was suddenly thrown aside by a sudden attack, and Daolon Wong finally managed to pry himself from the rubble he had found himself in after being hit aside.

"I would have never thought that demons of your caliber would be foolish enough to disturb this process or challenge me! If I could sever a god and drown this world in impenetrable darkness then what makes you think I cannot fend off you!" the raging chi wizard shouted, and another chaotic ray of dark energy lunged itself from the end of his staff towards the recovering demon. Hsi Wu let out a pained scream as he was thrown across the room, but luckily he landed on something soft, which happened to be Jackie as they had finally reached the storage unit.

"Fools! Do you honestly believe that you can stop me?" Daolon Wong shouted, and the demons all gave him looks that could kill.

"You either have endless courage or foolishness to challenge us mortal!" Tchang Zu said angrily, standing before his brethren as they stood in formation. Jackie was left with the air knocked out of him and watching as the events began to unfold.

"If you believe yourselves to be so powerful then prove it! Defeat me!" Daolon Wong said with a mocking grin towards them, and they immediately took action.

Each one at the same moment summoned their element, whatever could be spared from the laboring earth around them, and gathered what they could into the compound around them. Tchang Zu summoned up a storm from overhead, the natural storm forcing itself through the unstable tempest that was slowly devouring the world around them. Soon enough they had conjured the essential ingredients for their attack, and with a silent nod from Tchang Zu they commenced what they had been planning. Daolon Wong watched in interest as Jackie slowly crept behind the stacks of crates and cardboard boxes, hoping to get to Wepwawet and remove him from designated circle.

The demons then each distributed their gathered remnants of their elements, meshing all of them together into a single attack that none of them had needed to use for centuries.

"This combination is potentially unstable; be prepared for anything that may happen," Bai Tsa reminded them, and they all nodded in understanding as each their hands fell over the attack, keeping it in check. This control, they knew, would be lost to them when they unleashed it. Jackie and Wepwawet were dangerously close to where it would fall upon the chi wizard, but they had little other choice. Not that killing off either of them would have caused any feelings of guilt anyways.

And then, without another word they released the energy with a push and thrust from each of them in the direction of Daolon Wong. For the entire attack he had looked confident that he could easily halt the energy, but as it approached the chi wizard's once egotistical expression melted into one of terror, and the last they saw of him was being enveloped in the horrifically large attack.

Jackie had expected to be eaten away from the tremulous attack as well, but as he looked around himself he found he was protected by a half-sphere extruding from the ground, composed of a faltering light. Wepwawet was smiling as he held but a few fingers into the air.

"It wouldn't be very thankful for all you've done to allow you to be harmed or murdered now would it?" the god murmured, managing to pull himself into a sitting position as the attack finally died down into nothing and dispersed into the air. Nothing remained there, and the demons all grinned maliciously at what their power had done. The walls and ceiling above were all heavily damaged as well, scorched and fragments in places by the energy.

"Wepwawet, are you going to be all right? Did Daolon Wong do anything to hurt you?" Jackie admitted what Jade had said was right; he did tend to speak like a younger person's father whenever he was concerned, even towards this temporarily mortal deity.

"I'm just fine; Daolon Wong's attack against me earlier was severe but short-lasting. It's beginning to wear off now," he said, leaning a bit on Jackie's shoulders and still grinning a bit. "I'm just glad this entire dilemma is over."

"Oh, but it this is not over yet!" came a deadly shout from over the darkness, and all eyes once again drew into the air to where the echoes emitted from.

There stood Daolon Wong, his robes torn and burnt from the attack and his flesh scarred and bloodied as well; unfortunately none of the wound he had suffered had been enough to keep him down for long, though his anger revealed the pain he must be experiencing. His staff was repaired and grasped in his hand, prepared to do his bidding for revenge as his being smoldered from the elemental barrage.

"I admit that attack was too strong for me to halt, but unfortunately my power was strong enough to defend me against it. And I will not allow you the time to gather that energy again, so prepare to return to the Underworld once again!" Daolon Wong spat, drawing his weapon into the air and summoning all the energy that he could from the amulet. The demons, Jackie and Wepwawet could only watch in terror and anger as he readied himself to finish them all off in a single wave of his staff, and he laughed down at them as the energy reached its peak.

"It's time for all of you to die!"

Suddenly there was a loud crash, and before Daolon Wong could even react he was struck by something that fell from the ceiling, and he disappeared into a stirred up cloud of thick dust and grime. Now the demons, Jackie and Wepwawet stared in confusion as their once ominous deaths hanging in the air vanished into bafflement.

When the dust finally began to clear, it could be seen what Daolon Wong had ended up crushed by. Fortunately Hak Foo had been the one who had landed primarily onto Daolon Wong, while the others had simple fallen onto one another as they had impacted the floor.

"Let's do that again," Sef said dizzily as he pulled himself from underneath Finn, spotting Jade atop the fallen forms of Ratso and Chow as they rubbed their heads and coughed from the dust. Nothing could have made this scenario any stranger it seemed as Jackie suddenly rushed forward.

"Jade! Sef, thank goodness you're both all right!" he shouted, pulling both of the children into his arms as they finally managed to recover.

"Uh…Jackie…?" Jade asked, and he looked down to see the both of them turning blue at the face as he continued to embrace them a bit too happily.

Wepwawet managed to limp towards them, using the scattered objects around as stabilizers. "I'm glad to see you managed to escape Sef, as well as your friends. I'm sorry about all of this, the misfortune I've managed to cause you…"

"Ah forget about it, I'm just glad to have gotten out of there," Sef said, and they all turned to see Daolon Wong indeed knocked out cold from beneath where Hak Foo managed to get his footing again and stumbled away awkwardly, the staff broken and the amulet having fallen from his neck in the process.

Sef stepped forward to pick it up, beginning to tie it back around his neck. "I'll be taking this back now. You know I've kind of missed…this…thing… wait a minute, when did you get a body?!" he suddenly shouted, pointing towards Wepwawet in a delayed reaction.

"We were pressed to find a way to retrieve you if you couldn't find your own way out, so we used one of the talismans to do this. But now that the amulet is back around your neck…" Wepwawet suddenly began to dematerialize as Sef made the final knot, vanishing and safely back into the slab of stone from where he had come.

"So Daolon Wong has been stopped, but can I ask what exactly they are doing here?" Sef shouted and pointed yet again, this time towards the Eight Demon Sorcerers as they remained in their isolated group, and while they indeed did stare loathingly at Sef, they didn't attack…at least not immediately.

"They were summoned here to help. We didn't if you would be able to escape or not and we needed to defeat Daolon Wong before the earth merged with the Underworld…" Jackie began, and suddenly everyone was forced back to reality as the situation around them continued. The sky became a bit darker as they rushed back outside, watching the blackness simmer in flashes of a crimson hue as the process commenced.

"I have to stop this before our world is lost," Sef said, suddenly aiming his hands towards the sky and summoning the energy again, this time harnessing all that he could without feeling in danger of harming those around him. The energy consumed his being and used every fiber of his being as a channeling guide, but it didn't seem to be enough. He had managed to stop the process, but the merger would begin once he let go.

"I…I don't have the energy to do this! Wepwawet's abilities are still in disarray from what has happened!" Sef shouted, keeping hold of the beam while at the same time the ground began to shake under the force, cracking beneath his sandals and the others were forced to draw away.

Tchang Zu turned to his siblings, looking as though regretting what he was about to say. "Mortals may be sickening creatures, but I will not stand by and allow us to be cast into that putrid realm once again. We must focus our remaining demon energy into the boy and hope it gives him to strength to overpower the damage that has been done and heal this world."

The others demons looked disgusted by this as well, but they didn't have much choice unless they wanted to end up in that hellish world again, maybe even for all of eternity this time. They did as he said almost immediately and called upon the aura they used to control their elements, aiming it into Sef's immobile form as he continued to pour every ounce of his own power into it.

It began to take effect slowly but surely, and they could see the darkness beginning to fade into evening light as Sef let out several pained shouts but continued to hold onto their salvation.

"I…I don't know how much longer I can hold on…it's…it's too much for my body to take…I…don't think I can do this…" he murmured, when suddenly he opened his eyes to find Jade hugging him again.

But this time was different than when they had been imprisoned in the Underworld and al hope had seemed lost, and she was smiling regardless of the fact that now she had to suffer under the energy as well.

"I…might not be a god…but I…can help you…" she said in between surges, and Sef could only nod speechlessly as the light swept over her as well and surrounded them both, continuing to stop the merger from ever happening. It wasn't as though arguing with her at this time was going to change anything at all; Jade would hold steadfast to the end he knew.

But soon enough she wasn't the only one. Sef watched as the Enforcers one by one approached as well and placed their hands onto his shoulders, cringing a bit with the force but managing to hold tight regardless.

"You didn't think we'd just leave you hanging did you? We owe it to you after what you did to stop the Demon Sorcerers," Finn said as the last figure to come and help arrived.

Jackie needn't say anything and instead placed both his hands onto Jade's shoulders and for a moment everyone standing on the now abandoned street was illuminated in a raging light, the aura continuing to soar into the air as it healed the barrier between the different realms.

And then it ended abruptly when the barrier had been completely resealed once more. The energy died away and they all fell to their knees, all but Sef who collapsed completely into Jade's arms again, muttering things half-consciously as the prevailing winds fled from the scene and all was quiet again. The sky was sapphire and shimmering with new light. The streetlights flickered on around them and the confused voices and sounds of everyone throughout the city began a chorus of that traveled across the world once plagued with evil.

"So the merger's been stopped…" Jade murmured, and suddenly Jackie looked startled by something. Both of them tensed up, thinking some new villain had appeared.

"Oh, I have to go see how Uncle and the others are doing! I hope Daolon Wong didn't harm them when they were under his control," he said, sprinting off into the compound as Sef reopened his eyes and found himself lying against Jade. He suddenly realized the demons had turned and were departed, and weakly he got back onto his feet.

"Hey, why did you do it?" he asked, and the nine figures halted and turned with his question. "Why did you help us? I thought you hated mortals…"

"Don't think this alliance goes past this moment child; we just didn't want to see our prey wasted on lesser demons in that foul world," Tchang Zu said, and Sef stared after them as they vanished into their element without another word.

"That was abrupt; I wonder…if they really do care about this world, well, in a we-don't-give-a-damn way," Sef said as Jade came alongside him. "Are you guys all doing all right back there?"

"Yeah, just throw us a few dozen boxes of Band-Aids, ice packs and gauze when you get the chance," Chow said in a disoriented voice, and Sef laughed softly and turned to his friend as the Enforcers helped one another back onto their feet.

"That was a brave thing you did, first trying to rescue me from Daolon, then taking on part of the burden of the energy as well. You could have died you know; we all could have, or worse, lost our souls to that awful darkness…" Sef muttered quietly.

"If we hadn't done anything we definitely would have died or lost or souls or whatever. Who could have ever predicted all of this when Uncle mentioned hosting an exchange student?" Jade asked, and Sef shrugged as a renewed grin fell over his face. "I mean, of all the kids in Egypt, we end up with one that's possessed and has more enemies than I can count. What do you say about that?"

"Er…just lucky I guess?" Sef muttered, and Jade laughed and pulled Sef into a headlock though he whimpered with pain as she did so.

"Hey, I'm still healing here! I don't think I'm physically fit for handling the powers of a _god_…"

"Yeah, I see you as being more of a nymph or something with regard to supernatural beings…"

"Jade, nymphs are female…"

"And your point is? Oh all right, you can be an imp instead!"

"Hey, take that back!" And thus, Sef chased Jade down the deserted street as the first few stars of night emerged.

**Author's Note:** Of course my story isn't ending here. Sorry this chapter was so very long, but college has started and I wanted to get this section of my fanfic finished so I can concentrate on schoolwork.


	27. Aftermath?

"It's like the calm after the storm has passed, only you don't know if there's another one over the horizon that you just can't see."

Sef's words summarized the general atmosphere the next morning when the sun rose again. It seemed so strange, the both of them contemplating how it may have never been if not for their intervention. Even with Daolon Wong now locked securely within the walls of Section 13, his exploits still hung threatening in the air, as if they hadn't managed to defeat him.

The both of them had wanted to spend the day at home once more, but Jackie pointed out that their previous day of recovery had simply led to their second struggle unfolding, and both were forced into attending school to face the ignorant masses. Their classmates of course had no realization of what had happened; a secondary effect of Daolon Wong's spell was the removal of all remembrance of it when it was removed. Thus Jade and Sef were left to seek solace solely with one another, retreating to the old, unused swing-set at the back end of the playground to sum up the unseen aftermath. They supposed they should feel blessed they hadn't been amongst the countless who had beenthe dark chi wizard'stemporary slaves. But then the burden of memories settled in a moment later, and their blood hadn't stopped running cold through their veins just yet.

"For some reason I feel even more empty than before," Sef murmured in questioning, rocking back and forth a bit on the writhing swing, which seemed to be hissing its weakness at him as he utilized it. Slight winds and a dank taste in the air betrayed coming rain only beginning to seep over the horizon. The sun overhead appearing to be dimming in preparation for its detainment.

"What do you mean? You and Dark Sef have been made one again, and Wepwawet was returned to you too. So what's the problem?" Jade asked, and Sef sighed and traced his bare toes against the unsettled dirt below, keeping his gaze low enough for his hair tobrush lightlyagainst his face.

"I just…I thought having Dark Sef back would make me feel whole again, orat leastfill in the gap I sensed between being either being able or unable to control Wepwawet's abilities, but now I just feel this void within me that wasn't there before. Like something's _still_ missing, but…it's never been there," Sef muttered quietly in confusion, but as usual Jade shrugged it off almost immediately,reading this as a sign of Sef's mere exhaustion after their tremulous adventure the previous day. She herself was still utterly shaken by the horrific things they had witnessed in the realm of the Underworld, but she wasn't about to reveal any of these fears where they could be seen.

"I wouldn't worry too much Sef, I mean weird feelings for you could range from divine transformations to indigestion right about now, after everything that's happened," she said, and Sef found himselfsmiling briefly before falling back intoan uncharacteristic apathy. "I'm sure your spirit's just getting used to the fact that it isn't broken anymore. It takes a while for the glue to dry you know, and wounds to heal too.Maybe the connection didn't end up right or something…I mean, it was Ganderyn's abilities that caused that to happen, and he ended up our enemy. Who knows what it could mean..."

"I'm grateful for your concern Jade; you're probably right. It might just be feelings of fear that having this darkness back within me will somehow effect my decisions eventually, or the actions of Wepwawet's abilities when they resurface, which I know they inevitably will considering their instability. I bet resting when we get back home will help us both get better," Sef said, and Jade nodded, looking back off towards the school where the other children were still at play, chasing one another across the numerous woodchips and seeking sanctuary in the colorful bowels of the playground.

Of course neither of them had gotten any sleep the night before after the conflict had ended; who could find slumber after witnessing the near-death of a god, of themselves, and accepting the aid of several demons they had thought to be their fiercest enemies? The confusion and dread of what could have happened,and what _did_ happen, was still weighing down on their souls, and only now was the weariness of their adventure beginning to settle in likedeluded poison. The teacher had had to shout at them several times during the day to stay awake, though this was easier said than done.

"You know I used to sit here by myself before you came along. People just never believed anything I ever told them; when things like what's happened the last few days occurred before…well there was no one I could talk to about it. No one who shared my feelings or knew what I went through. I was really lonely because they made fun of me when I tried telling them about it, and when I kept it bottled up it started to eat away at me it seemed." Sef was suddenly alert to what she was saying; he had never heard Jade sound so sad or quieted during his stay with the Chan's. It seemed they were both in rather depressing moods ever since the final closure between the realms. "But with you here, well...it's nice to have someone who understands what happened, who experienced it too. When you've seen something as terrible as we've both seen, it's comforting to know someone else has been there, was there with you."

"I'm sure given the choice we both would have forgotten as well, but we weren't under the control of Daolon Wong so the release of the chi spell had no effect on us, leaving us with the burden of remembering," Sef said, kicking his legs up into the air solemnly to give himself a bit more of a swing, "But then, without the knowledge you and I both have we wouldn't have been prepared. Confronting the Eight Demon Sorcerers gave me just enough courage to do what I did, and I wouldn't have been able to earlier if I hadn't ever faced them. It's almost ironic; the aftermath of one evil cancels out the next when you think about it that way."

"Yeah, I guess it does. In all truth I wouldn't trade anything to give up the life I've had here with Jackie and Uncle and Tohru. I mean, being back home in China was fun, but my parents weren't around so often and it got lonely there too, although I wasn't constantly pondering what could have happened if things haven't worked out. Likeif we hadn't escaped the Underworld, if you hadn't had the Dog talisman when you pulled that stunt on the rooftop…" she was beginning to slip back into her rare state of worry once more, but Sef was there to stop her before she plummeted into it again.

"The important thing is that we _did_ escape, that the talismans _were_ at our disposal, and that despite all that we've witnessed we've managed to gain something from it. You know people grow up unable to see what evil and darkness can do to them, and they become victims themselves to such thingsbecause they can't understand them. At least we have that wisdom, that concept of darkness to imagine so we never fall prey to it. Not just in the aspect of divine and demonic energy, but in everyday life. How many people can say they looked evil in the eyes and resisted it, even at the threat of _death_?" he said with a faint smile, and as she considered this the color began to once more return to her face from where it had faded, though the chilling and increasing winds made it hard for either of them to feel comforted by the revived world around them. Both of them couldn't help but question if something had been lost before they could save what remained.

"You're right; it's going to take a while to used to everyday life again, but we'll manage somehow. It's just…when I had adventures in the past, everything happened so fast I never even considered what could happen. I never even realized just how close I could have lost my life, or worse, my _soul_. It wasn't until you came along, when there was someone else's life at stake beside me that I came to see just how dangerous all those adventures in the past were," Jade said, but she smiled after she had said this. "But it's like you said, we lived and everything's all right now. We stood our ground and managed to survive. That's all that matters."

"Cheers to that," Sef said with a grin and a nod as he took in the refreshing smell of nearby wildflowers. "Now let's get inside before we get scolded again."

They watched for a moment as the children filed inside before they slid off the swings, still feeling as though something were isolating them from the rest of the world as they reentered the school.

Jade turned to Sef as they walked down the empty and silent corridor, listening to the distant noises of scattered schoolmates finding their desks chaotically and still sounding energetic from recess. Their teacher was beginning roll call from within their classroom and they quickened their pace so they weren't disciplined again, though the weight on them still hadn't dispersed fully.

"Do you think there's another storm over the horizon? Like from what you said earlier?"

Sef sighed, his earrings wavering back and forth with the sudden action and revived worry.

"That's the ominous part about it. You can never tell."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Aiya! It seems peace can never remain for long before being chased away again!" Uncle exclaimed suddenly as Jackie came walking through the door into the shop, carrying the groceries in as well as some small trinkets that Jackie had purchased for Sef and Jade to hopefully cheer them up. The two weary children had trudged home from school, skipping out on an early dinner and fallen asleep accidentally in the other's bed. Jackie had tucked them in and told Tohru to cook another dinner later for them when the hunger woke them up again.

"Uncle, please keep you voice down. Jade and Sef are sleeping upstairs," Jackie murmured, placing a finger over his mouth in suggestion as Uncle continued to mutter things angrily in Chinese.

Unfortunately, Uncle had been raging long before Jackie had come home and woken them both up. They had attempted to drown out the noise with every pillow they could find, but it was to no avail. Just a moment before Jackie had walked in through the front door they had snuck down the stairs, not an easy task considering the stairs loved to creak and squeal whenever secrecy was wanted. The both of them had literally slid down them to reduce the noise when the elderly man hadn't been watching and had quickly gotten themselves wedged into a broom closet, though now uncomfortably stuck together.

"Why are we down here Jade? We should be trying to get some sleep…after all we've been through you think we'd be able to get a decent nap before something else happens, which we don't know if it even has!" Sef was cranky and upset that his rejuvenating sleep had been disrupted yet again. Semi-circles of darkness lied under his eyes to reveal his weariness.

"Something has happened!" Uncle suddenly declared.

"We just can't ever get a break, can we?" Sef muttered, peering through the slit of light thatstreaked infrom the next room, now crouched below where Jade was looking in secretly as well.

"Don't get too worried yet, Uncle tends to be overly dramatic about a lot of things, and believe me, if it were something _really_ bad he'd barely be able to whisper," Jade replied, though Sef was skeptical about this statement. The first shout the chi wizard had sounded upon entering the dusty confines of his shop that been enough to frighten the half-asleep boy to full consciousness, and he had been hoping toget some sleepup on the second floor, thinking all noises would be blocked out. How wrong he had been.

"What do you think has him in such an uproar anyways?" Sef asked in a whisper, looking up through the semi-darkness towards his focused friend, and she looked down at him briefly before looking back up again, listening as intently as possible with her ears nearly pressed against the door.

"If you're quiet then maybe we'll find out."

Outside of the broom closet Uncle was indeed still in an almost childish rage, waving his arms and clutching paperwork that both of them was baffled to see entirely written in Chinese. His pacing was beginning to make Sef very dizzy as he continued saying things in swift Chinese. Though Jade was able to translate at least part of what was written on the papers, Uncle was moving them around too quick and sporadically for her to look at them and understand what they meant.

"Uncle, why are you shouting so loud? Both the children are trying to sleep upstairs, and you know what they went through yesterday. They need to recover or else they could become sick from the stress put on them," Jackie said in a slightly worried tone, entering into the store as a rather unappetizing smell filled the air from the kitchen, thick enough to force both Sef and Jade cough faintly.

"Please tell me that some sort of chi spell he's trying and _not_ our dinner…" Jade murmured weakly, watching as wisps of unexplained smoke weaved between the beaded divider between the rooms. Uncle took a moment to calm his nerves and temper before he answered, once again restraining himself from walloping his nephew upside the head as had become habit. The situation was too aggravating for him to keep a perfectly level head, and still spewing thousands of different, silent curses, he began to tell Jackie of what was causing him distress.

"Uncle happened across this morning's newspaper, and a horrible mistake has been made! Look!" he said, thrusting the newspaper at Jackie, who caught it just in time and looked down onto the page Uncle had folded outwards, reading the head article for a moment before cocking an eyebrow in confusion.

"But Uncle, this is just about a new artifact being shipped to the museum here in San Francisco from China. I thought you would be happy to see our culture presented and shown to others," Jackie said, and Uncle took back his newspaper, rolled it and quickly whacked Jackie upside the head with it as Jade and Sef quietly cringed in the darkness, unable to distinguish what was wrong either.

"That abacus they're shipping here belonged to Master Fong, the wisest of all chi wizards who tutored me in their mysterious and powerful ways! Uncle cannot allow one of his precious instruments to be displayed in a museum, especially with the powers it holds…" Uncle trailed off, seeming to ponder something as a look of deeper worry now crossed over Jackie's face, and Sef and Jade held their breath to listen to what happened next.

"What powers? Are you saying that this abacus your Master used was enchanted somehow?"

"Yes, but its abilities elude Uncle at the moment. Master Fong was very secretive about his workings outside of the teachings he gave us, and Uncle never questioned this. He simply remembers seeing that very same instrument amongst the items that Master Fong left in his wake," Uncle said, and Sef could understand now why he was taking this so hard. It wasn't easy losing someone you respected greatly, especially watching as the objects they held dear were thrust to whomever placed the highest bid. Of course, he'd never felt this guilt before in helping excavate tombs and burial chambers, considering anyone who could be angry or hurt was being dug up in the process.

"But Uncle, it says here that the instruments came into the possession of Master Fong's granddaughter. There's nothing we can do about this if she has legal right over his property now."

"Li Rong is a foolish girl, unknowing of the great works her grandfather commenced. Uncle must go there to China and retrieve the abacus before it falls into dark or ignorant hands, and bring it here so it's abilities are not unleashed," he proclaimed, now calmly setting the newspaper aside.

"But Uncle, we've only just stopped Daolon Wong, why must you hurry off when you cannot even remember what the abacus's powers are?" Jackie asked, this time seeing the blow coming and ducking underneath Uncle's hand before it made contact. He was getting better at predicting this characteristic act of anger; unfortunately Uncle instead dealt a lightning fast kick to his shin in retaliation as Jackie yelped in suprise. Once again Sef and Jade cringed from where they were watching.

"Uncle sure has fast reflexes for a man his age," Sef muttered quietly.

"Do not question Uncle's judgment! He does not need your permission to do as he pleases!" Uncle shouted, and Jackie rubbed his now aching leg and sighed. It was useless attempting to argue with his aging relative, but he couldn't allow him to journey all the way back to China by himself. He just couldn't trust Uncle to behave himself and not disrespect Li Rong, whom he constantly complained to be ignorant of all that her grandfather had been idolized for. But he couldn't leave both Jade and Sef in Tohru's care; he was their primary guardian under the agreements of the foreign exchange program and Tohru had little idea of how to watch after and take care of children. They would probably have him exhausted and half-dead by the time they returned. And he alsoknew the same went for if he left Tohru to accompany Uncle there as well. And there was still the shop to worry about as well.

"Uncle, you aren't thinking this through! I'm not about to let you run off to China by yourself; I can't leave the kids here legally and Tohru couldn't possible run the shop and watch after them at the same time," Jackie said, but Uncle of course had his rationalizations for this entire matter.

"Uncle has already called your friend Augustus from Section 13 about this matter. He said he would have one of hisemployees watch over the shop until we return and keep Uncle's valuables safe from thieves," Uncle said, and Jackie was left awestruck. His uncle had really outdone himself this time, considering he was placing Jackie in a very toughpredicament to say 'no' to this situation.

He simply sighed and walked off into the kitchen wearily. "I have to make completely sure that the foreign exchange program will allow me to take Sef with us," he said in defeat.

"Do not bother, Uncle has already taken care of that too," Uncle said, and Jackie instead began trudging towards the stairs after setting the gorcery bags against the threshold into the kitchen for Tohru to sort and put away.

"One _more_ thing; Uncle has already packed our luggage and purchased us plane tickets to get there. Our flight leaves this evening," Uncle said simply in a matter-of-factly voice, and by now Jackie was plopped down on the ragged old sofa that had become a place for cluttering old books and artifacts that needed to be cleaned.

Sef and Jade were silent for a moment of reflection as to what had just been said, and then Sef looked up as Jade continued to stare out, as though waiting for something else shocking to happen.

"So...I guess we're going to China now?" Sef asked, cocking his head slightly to the side as Jade looked intently on. 'Not that _we_ have any say in it anyways...'

"Looks like it; c'mon, let's get back upstairs and make sure Uncle packed everything we need. Knowing him he probably used our suitcases to stuff all of his chi-spell materials into. One time we went to see one of Jackie's friends and all he stuffed into my bags was my socks and sweaters," Jade said simply, quietly sneaking from the closet once more and crawling slowly back up the stairs.

Sef couldn't help but notice the strange change in Jade's mood that had come over her, an even more serious atmosphere wrapped around her than earlier. "Jade, is something wrong?"

"No, of course nothing's wrong! If there was I would have told you…" she said slightly angrily.

Sef simply sighed without saying anything else. 'Great, I'm being shipped off to China and there's something serious enough going on to have Jade quiet and angry. Just perfect…'


	28. Troubles and Recovery

The plane ride had been rather uneventful, with Jade and Sef huddled together under Jackie's coat asleep through the movie and a mixed bag of nuts as well. Jackie spent the time making arrangements on his laptop computer to have a hotel room ready for them when they landed in the next few hours, and Tohru and Uncle had commenced a ritual to cleanse the skies of bad chi so their flight wouldn't be interrupted. So far it appeared to be working; the two tropical depressions that had been potential threats had 'mysterious' cleared as they traveled on route for the city of Guangzhou, just a short distance outside the bustling life of Hong Kong.

Jackie buckled in Jade and Sef before the plane landed so they could get as much sleep as was possible, and they finally landed just as the evening was settling in over China.

"This is going to be so exciting Sef, you can see our culture just as you wanted to when you first arrived," Jackie said, attempting to rekindle their spirits even with Uncle murmuring about curses and dark chi.

Sef admitted he was excited; he'd been all over the Middle East on archeological digs and exhibitions but very few places elsewhere. China had been one of the destinations he had hoped for, and now here he was, waiting alongside the Chans and Tohru for a taxi to come and pick them up. They had already called ahead once they had gotten off their flight that they'd be coming by the private museum Li Rong owned, and Sef could just make out their destination across the spanning city.

Of course, they would have been able to see more of it if not for the banners and decorations draped across the streets in unexplained ceremony. Sef found himself suddenly buried under a fallen cloth, which weighed a lot more than it had appeared as it draped onto him after coming loose.

"What is all this stuff for?" he asked, but the others all looked as intrigued as surprised as him.

"This must be some sort of local festive, these decorations aren't like anything I've ever seen in Hong Kong before," Jackie noted, but they didn't have time to figure out what celebration was in the makings around them and instead hopped into a taxi and took off for the hotel Jackie had managed to squeeze them into.

It seemed these odd festivities around them were the cause of all the hotels being mysteriously filled up out-of-season, what with autumn about to give way to winter. Sef especially felt chilled in his summer clothing, which was nearly all that he had packed with the warmth and arid climate he had been accustomed to.

"Once we get settled we'll find you something warmer to wear," Jackie promised, and Sef wedged himself a bit tighter between Uncle and Tohru in order to gain from their body heat as he nodded and shivered.

Sef had never seen such an odd and strange hotel before as they entered, though the others stared at the display before and above them casually. "What…what is this place?"

"These are called capsule hotels; people who stay here are given a small room to stay in that gives them enough room to sleep, and it usually has a television, a radio, and hopefully some warmer pajamas than the ones you brought," Jackie said, but Sef was still a bit lost.

"Kinda like a locker room rental that you put yourself into rather than your belongings," Jade said, and Sef nodded as though it had suddenly been explained perfectly.

They checked in quickly and then got onto an open elevator that took them to the tenth 'floor' of the hotel. Almost the entire far wall was composed of these small, compact rooms, and Jackie halted before the first one on their right and set down four of the suitcases he was forced to carry.

"I'm afraid that these reservations were a bit short noticed, and you two will have to share one of these," Jackie said, but Sef and Jade were still tired out and merely shrugged, gathering their belongings and wedging themselves into the room.

The walls were made of linoleum that was cold to the touch, but after lying out their packed pillows and sheets it became comfortable enough for them to lie beside one another and watch some television.

"Are these some sort of Chinese soap operas or something?" Sef asked, cocking his head to the side in fascination.

"No, if there were soap operas in China then they'd all end with those who were betrayed or cheated on killing off the traitor with a samurai sword," Jade remarked, and Sef laughed at her comment, expecting to hear her laugh alongside his own echoing from the confining walls. Yet there was only him, and he felt both foolish and worried all over again.

"Okay, something is definitely bothering you. I thought you said you liked talking to me about things that plagued you, that it gave you some sort of solace. Is it something I did?" he asked, now feeling a twinge of fear pass through his being as she sighed and continued staring off, distracted by something unseen. He feared that something about him, his behavior or his demeanor, had shifted or changed due to the merger he had undergone.

"No, it isn't anything you've done Sef, and I really do like talking to you. But this isn't something I feel like sharing; you wouldn't be able to understand and I really don't feel like bringing it up," Jade said simply, plopping back onto her pillows with a vaguely concerned expression.

"But you said yourself if you keep something bottled up inside then it's bound to erupt at any time. I might understand, and even if I don't I can still try and help you…"

"Let's just drop the subject okay Sef? Sometimes you can get really annoying with all your questioning. If someone says they don't want to talk then they mean it."

"You're just cranky like I was earlier. Let's get some sleep and maybe if you're feeling better you'll tell me. But if you really don't want to, far be it from me to keep prying," Sef said in short-lived defeat, gathering up the pajamas provided for him and opening the door into their room to depart and change. Jade watched after him and turned back to stare at the television, watching the static appear every once in a while in a strange pattern.

'I wish I could tell him, but this is his first trip to China and this is my problem anyways. I just hope it doesn't happen, or I don't know what I'll do…'

Sef trudged down the balcony overlooking the remainder of the vast hotel, watching as other commuters and visitors entered and left, the smell of Chinese cooking in the air from the nearby food court. His stomach groaned slightly from having not enjoying any snacks or meals on the airplane, but they would have to wait to be satisfied in the morning. Sleep was far more important at this point, and his body was beginning to weaken and droop with increasing weariness.

'I wonder where the bathrooms are. I wonder if changing or using the bathroom here requires some sort of traditional practice or something. I know that in public bathhouses you have to cleanse yourself in front of people…' Sef considered, attempting to distract his mind so he didn't fall asleep on his feet.

He finally reached the men's washroom and entered, praying he wouldn't have to figure out some odd custom on changing clothes and relieving oneself. Thankfully the bathroom was modern and he quickly did what he needed to, changing into the scratchy, faded pajamas and then journeying back towards his room where Jade had more than likely fallen asleep.

Sef halted outside the room next to his own, looking in to see poor Tohru barely squeezed into the small room, forced to sleep while sitting and crouching. Sef opened the door and found just enough room to push himself in, wordlessly looking up the gentle giant as he hoped to get advice.

"Are you all right Sef? Is there something wrong?" Tohru asked kindly first, but Sef immediately shook his head and instead went right to the point, somewhat hoping that this could be swift so he could get to bed himself.

"Jade…she's been acting kind of strange ever since we found out we were heading here to China. I think there's something wrong; did something bad happen here that would bother her? Uncle might have mentioned something to you, but I honestly didn't feel like waking him up in the middle of the night for…well…obvious reasons." Sef had seen Jackie get whacked upside the head enough times to get the gist of what happened when someone did something the old man didn't appreciate.

Tohru took a moment to consider her perplexity, and then sighed as he scratched his head with tiredness plaguing him as well. "I have not heard Uncle say anything on Jade's health or her feelings towards China; perhaps you should wait until she tells you herself what is bothering her."

"That's what she said, but it's hard watching someone you care about suffer, especially when it's beneath the surface, something they won't allow to be healed. I just want her to be happy with me; I've wanted to come here for so long but it won't be any fun or enjoyable with her in distress," Sef said, blushing slightly afterwards as he realized how personal these last statements had been. Tohru, however, wasn't the kind to draw out any confessions and instead stayed on topic, pondering what he had said.

Tohru contemplated another moment for Sef's sake though all of them were ready to retire for the night. "I believe that Jackie has mentioned Jade's unwillingness to come here before. You would probably have better luck asking him about this manner; after all, he is her uncle."

Sef sighed and nodded, still leaning against the far wall of the miniature room. "I just want to help. It might seem nosy or rude, but Jade is my friend and we've sworn to help one another." His voice was dry from the crisp air filtering in through the ventilation system overhead, only beginning to warm up for the evening cold.

Tohru smiled and patted him on the head lightly, a bit difficult considering how small Sef was and how easily Tohru's massive hands could crush him, but Sef smiled with the gesture of comfort.

"Jade can take care of herself; she's been through hardships before you came along and now she's lucky enough to have someone who can relate to her," Tohru said, and Sef nodded once more, now once again pressing himself against the icy wall to get himself out of the room, waving goodnight to Tohru as he switched off the light and hung his head in long-awaited slumber.

Sef could hear snoring and sounds of slumber from all around him, opening the small glass door back into his shared room and indeed finding Jade asleep on the floor, having restlessly cast her blankets aside and breathing a bit loudly thanks to a cold forming. Sef smiled briefly and tugged her sheets back over her before he slumped back onto his own bed, turning off the humming television and settling in for the night.

He looked back at Jade one more time before giving in to the gnawing weariness attempting to lull him to sleep.

'At least we're away from that ungodly mess back in San Francisco. I'm sure whatever's bothering Jade will pass eventually…maybe it's just her way of recovering in the long run. I just don't want her to forget that I'm here for her…'


	29. A Warm Welcome

Morning arose quicker than anyone could have imagined or wanted, only Uncle truly awake with his revived anger for the situation at hand. After a hasty breakfast in the guest lounge downstairs, a pot of hot coffee spilled on Jackie and Sef and Jade getting lost attempting to find their rooms once again, they began to walk towards their destination, the museum only a few city blocks from the hotel Jackie had picked out. Their luggage had been gathered and tallied in case they moved out that night, hoping to find a better place for the rest of their stay.

"Uncle, please promise me you won't be disrespectful to Li Rong. She is still young and did not have the honor of witnessing what her grandfather commenced in his days as a chi wizard," Jackie said, but Uncle simply crossed his arms and pouted a bit, annoyed that he was being treated like an immature child all while scowling a bit childishly under his breath.

Jackie held both Sef and Jade's hands in his own, a fact that left them both feeling humiliated and upset, but he would always point out in a matter-of-factly fashion that every time they were allowed on their own something happened. They couldn't help but notice he was right, and this served to annoy them even further.

"You're treating us like babies! We know not to wander around a strange city by ourselves Jackie. Look at that!" Jade suddenly shouted, instinctively about to leap from Jackie's side if not for the firm hold he had on her hand. She nearly toppled to the pavement below and growled back up at him as a smiled knowingly and Sef laughed softly, attempting to repress the urge.

"Have you been to this museum before Jackie? You seem to know this city rather well," Tohru noted, and Jackie nodded with a smile as he glanced at what Jade had been so anxious to escape to. It seemed to be a part of whatever was being celebrated in the city; a large auditorium was being erected in the heart of the city as they passed, beautiful and exquisite ornaments hung everywhere around the area.

"Yes, I've come here on a few occasions from Hong Kong to deliver shipments to this museum. Li Rong has run this place since she was only eighteen and her parents both passed away from a traffic accident. She is a very intelligent girl; Uncle just speaks poorly of her because she chose not to carry on with the heritage of chi wizardry her grandfather Master Fong was famous for," Jackie said, and Uncle scuffed at him and looked away defiantly. It didn't seem anything Jackie said was going to change his mind, though the young man was growing tired of his relative's attitude.

Nearly all of them stood in awe of the building, all except for Jackie since he's already seen it several times before, and Uncle of course who was still acting out of disapproval. Sef and Jade couldn't believe the artistry put into the building alone. The front entrance into the marvelous building was composed entirely of roseate marble, polished to perfection and gleaming in the maturing sunlight. A few handful of exhibits greeted them on their way in, dustless and ageless in their individual display glasses with a long story behind the item itself posted before it. Sef and Jade had to be yanked several times to keep from looking at some of the fascinating things they passed, but Jackie promised them he would take them around later so they could see all that they wished to. They managed to settle down; it wasn't as though they had a choice considering they were all but shackled to their guardian.

They entered into the main chamber of the museum where people were presenting their tickets and purchasing them, and now the two children were stunned into silence. The room was so vast it seemed to outreach eternity, with ivory columns holding up the balconies overhead for onlookers to see below, as well as several double-doors leading off into other marked divisions of the museum and the theatre they hosted here. What shocked them the most was how everything was kept so vivid and pristine; an almost divine glow seemed to radiate off of everything in the dawning light streaming in through the skylights far above, creating the illusions of many suns shining down upon them.

Jackie managed to catch the attention of one of the employees and asked them if they could locate Li Rong for him, revealing his own museum pass that allowed him into designated sites free of charge for work and leisure when it was possible. The employee checked this first and then went off to find her for him, and they waited in the center of the thoroughfare crisscrossing around the enormous stone fountain they came to rest at.

"Wow, this place is like heaven compared to the dinky museum back in San Francisco," Jade summed it up rather crudely, and Sef nodded as the adults found countless other ways to describe the building that were a bit more eloquent.

"I wonder if we'll have time to go and see a play today; I'd love to see some Chinese theatre while we're here," Sef said, watching as people filed in for the next showing, some clenching binoculars and other viewing tools for those sitting high in the balconies.

"We'll see how the day pans out; if we have time I'll take you to see whatever's showing later on," Jackie promised yet again, and Jade mentally made a note to herself to make sure he followed through on these oaths of his.

"Jackie? Oh it's so good to see you again!" came a voice to their right, and all their eyes turned to see a young woman passing through a path made for her by the guests progressing into the museum.

Jackie stood and was instantly pulled into a friendly embrace from the woman while Jade and Sef took their time memorizing her appearance. The elaborate kimono and hairstyle she was raveled in enhanced the subtle beauty that all Chinese women carried with them, robes of silver and pink primarily with lots of ribbon and embroidery to lavish it further. She wore heavy layers of the traditional make-up as well, her face painted in a very pale shade of apricot and smearing slightly as she embraced Jackie for a moment before moving on to greet the others. Sef liked her eyes; they were a soft cobalt color and still held a great deal of innocence within them, a sure sign she was truthful and virtuous from what he had learned back in Egypt.

"And who are these lovely children? Oh they're so sweet," Li Rong said, rustling both their hair gently as they did their best not to cringe. Neither of them liked very much the attention they got for being 'cute' or 'sweet' as many women appeared to think they were, but considering she was Jackie's friend they made due with this.

"This is Jade, my niece from Hong Kong who was visiting Uncle's residence in San Francisco as well. And this is Sef Artaxerxes; he's a foreign exchange student from Egypt staying with us as well," Jackie introduced them as Li Rong observed them both as they had her.

"You look so much like your charming uncle Jade," Li Rong commented first, then turning to Sef, "And what an honor to have a guest from so far around the world. We actually just opened a new wing of the museum dedicated to art and culture of the Middle East. Maybe you can tour it later and tell me if I did your society justice."

"Oh…okay," Sef said, blushing a bit as she continued to smile at him and then turned away. Jade found herself hating this for some reason, though she quickly quenched her anger when Sef's bashfulness subsided and his tanned skin stopped being quite so cherry-red.

"This is Tohru; he's the apprentice who helps keep Uncle's shop running and successful," Jackie said, and Tohru bowed respectfully to the young woman.

"It is an honor to meet you," he said politely.

"The honor is mine. It's such a treat that you brought friends and family with you Jackie. But where is…one, I think I see him now!" Li Rong said, looking around Tohru to where Uncle was attempting to hide himself, hoping to be left unnoticed until his time of proclamation came. "I thought I saw you hiding back there." She suddenly embraced Uncle as she had Jackie, though the old man looked as though he were being pulled into the deathly hold of a boa constrictor.

"Let go of me at once! I did not come here to exchange gestures of friendship!" Uncle shouted, but Li Rong continued to hug him for another moment before pulling away, the old chi master looking ill as though the embrace had been venomous.

"I would have thought you had forgiven me by now Shaiming, you always were someone to carry out a grudge against someone," Li Rong commented as she brushed away a few loose strands of hair that had fallen, continuing to look at him like an old friend regardless of his reaction.

"Who's Shaiming?" Sef murmured to Jade, who seemed as baffled as himself, but Jackie quickly explained.

"Shaiming is Uncle's real name, we've just become so accustomed to calling him 'Uncle' that his real name is rarely ever used anymore," Jackie said, turning back with humility and concern as he waited for Uncle's fit to take hold.

"Shaiming is not necessary, Uncle is only called Uncle now," the old man said as though she should already know this. "And he has come here now to retrieve something you were simply going to toss into some museum across the seas: the old abacus that your grandfather used during his days of weaving the chi's energy."

Li Rong took a moment to translate what he was saying, and then she nodded gently when she realized what he was speaking of. "I remember now, yes I was going to have it shipped there because we're running a bit out of room here for anymore displays. But I'm afraid that it's all but buried in the backrooms with the other artifacts waited to be shipped or exhibited. If you're willing to stay a few days I'll have my crew try and find it for you," she offered pleasantly, and Uncle seemed to calm.

"Oh, we could never take it from you…" Jackie said, but Li Rong continued to smile with that almost sickeningly sweet grin.

"It's all right; after all Uncle was a disciple of my grandfather and I understand the great respect he has for him. Besides, I know it will be in good hands by presenting it to him," Li Rong said, and though his immature displays earlier had been for nothing, Uncle continued to act as though he were justified in not liking her.

"Well, since we've gotten that taken care of I might as well call around and see if I can find us a hotel to stay in," Jackie said, about to head towards the payphones to the immediate right when Li Rong halted him.

"Don't be ridiculous Jackie, you're my guests here and I'd be honored to have you come to my estate and stay with me. Besides, you'll be lucky finding anything at all at this time," she added with a bit of a blush, though none of them understood why.

"Oh, you're speaking of the festival going on right now correct?" Jackie asked, and Li Rong only served to turn a deeper shade of crimson, glimmering through even the dried paints on her face.

"Well, it isn't a festival in all truth. The people of the city are holding a celebration in the name of my upcoming wedding," she announced, and finally they realized why she had been acting shy towards the sudden change in conversation.

"That's wonderful, congratulations Li Rong!" Jackie exclaimed, this time embracing her as Sef and Jade perked up a bit more. They were already both contriving plans on how they would convince Jackie to allow them to stay and witness the wedding for themselves, considering Li Rong was being so kind to them.

"And who is the lucky groom who will be taking your hand in marriage," Tohru asked with a pleased smile himself, though Uncle was still unrelenting in his crusade to be unhappy throughout this entire trip. Sef swore he saw the old man look congratulatory for a brief moment, but it faded quickly before anyone else could notice.

"His name is Jin-Shing Song, but unfortunately he's away taking care of some business today. You can meet him later when you come to stay at our home. It's just a few miles from here. In fact," she said, turning to size up the crowd in the museum for a moment. "I think I might be able to slip away for a moment and take you there so you can get settled in. We can stop by whatever hotel you stayed in and get your belongings."

"We don't want to intrude upon you, especially with this joyous occasion approaching…" Jackie began, but the young woman wouldn't hear of it.

"I insist; I would be dishonoring my grandfather by turning away one of his faithful pupils, as well as a dear friend of mine. You've been a great help to this museum Jackie, even back before it flourished into what we see today. Please let me repay you with this favor," she said with a respectful bow that Sef absentmindedly returned. Jade elbowed him lightly in the ribs to tell him it wasn't the appropriate time.

Jackie wasn't about to argue any further since he always seemed to lose, and before they knew it they were once again journeying down the street, this time with their luggage in tow, mostly thanks to Tohru, walking towards the Fong estate.

"Normally I take a taxi but it's such a short distance and a nice day outside," Li Rong said, and the others agreed. Besides that, it was usually hard getting Tohru from place to place because of his size; they had needed to take two different taxies in order to get from the airport to the capsule hotel the previous evening.

Sef looked towards Jade with a serious expression, which baffled her considering the renewed excitement in the air. It seemed just as her own worries dispersed they instead entered into Sef since he was always close by.

"What's gotten into you now?"

"I just have a bad feeling about this…something about this place. I can't put my finger on it right now…but then again maybe it's just the aftermath still bothering me…" Sef said, and Jade nodded wordlessly though she could sense something potentially amiss as well.

But with the festivities still be constructed and perfected all around them, these feelings of worry and suspicion were quickly dispensed and they entered the Fong estate with a refreshed sense of amazement.


	30. Visions of Death?

"There's enough room in here to shelter my whole family and then some! I don't think I've ever laid eyes on such a spectacular place, not even the resurrected temples of Egypt," Sef shouted as he entered his designated room with an awed expression and an excited grin, the spanning ceiling arching above with a graceful Oriental chandelier and providing a soft glimmer of light across the room.

"Ha, mine is bigger," Jade said in immediate response.

"Is not."

"Is too."

"Is _not_."

"Is _too_."

"Can you both please just unpack our things and get downstairs without anymore arguments? Li Rong's fiancée just arrived back from his business trip and she's anxious for us to meet him," Jackie said, his tone expressing just how much too wanted this be a rejuvenating excursion. Sef nodded and simply tossed his suitcase onto his bed lazily, following Jade in a half-sprint out the doors and through the lavish hallway until they caught up to Jackie, staying alongside him with feigned obedience.

The whole house smelt of the plentiful rose gardens Li Rong had surrounded her estate with the previous summer, and the windows were all open to allow in the crisp breezes sweeping across the mainland from the ocean, warning of storms in the evening and carrying a faintly salt taste with them. Her home was very similar to the museum in design and layout, except all the beautiful and priceless artifacts weren't held safely within glass displays. Jackie grasped both of their hands tighter as they tried to flee past him, and they sulked and stared at one another in understanding.

"He seems to think we're going to break everything we pass," Jade muttered angrily to Sef, who shrugged and sighed. Everything was happening so quickly that it was hard for him to be angry about anything; besides that, they had just entered into the vast dining area where they would be taking their dinner. Uncle and Tohru were already there, muttering some before meal chants. Sef laughed softly as Jade's stomach let out a boisterous groan for food.

"What, do they think there's dark chi in the food or something?" Sef whispered.

"No, it's more along the lines of deluding poison and stuff like that," Jade replied.

Sef gulped and continued to follow along.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here. I'll go and get Jin-Shing," Li Rong said blissfully from the opposite side of the room where she was doing some last-minute dusting, and she rushed through the swinging doors and vanished for a moment as they took their seats.

"Do I have to bow to the chair first?"

"Sef, you only bow to people who deserve respect. We don't bow to everything you come upon you know," Jade replied as she rolled her eyes, plopping into her own chair in an unruly fashion as the rich smells of dinner seeped in from the unseen kitchens nearby. Their stomachs moaned for food, and Sef patted his as Jade hissed at her own to be quiet.

Li Rong suddenly emerged back into the room with her fiancée, who looked more tired than themselves from the business he had been taking care of. "This is Jin-Shing Song, my fiancée," Li Rong happily announced, and already everyone but Uncle liked him immediately.

Sef could tell he wasn't Chinese, though he had strong distinctions of Oriental descent without a doubt. His hair was ashen and long as though he had bleached it this color, hanging below his shoulders, and he wore glasses that rested on the bridge of his nose that gave him an intelligent look. His robes were somewhat traditional in appearance, as though they'd been modified to look more modern. He had pleasant smile on his face that faded a bit as he entered the room, the weariness seeming to finally catch hold of him.

"Oh, if I'd known before we had company then I would have freshened up a bit before coming downstairs. All of you can just call me Jin though," Jin said with a nervous grin. He seemed to be shy as Li Rong gave him a look.

The introductions happened quickly, with Sef coming last and smiling up at Jin-Shing as the young man, much to his rekindled annoyance, patted his head as everyone did. His face flared for a moment with embarrassment and habitual anger before it vanished into a forced, innocent smile.

"What nice young boy; I'm looking forward to having a couple of fine sons like you," he said cheerfully, and Sef noticed he was applying a bit too much pressure. By the time he pulled away Sef's head was throbbing slightly and he was rubbing it with a look of contempt.

'I pity their children…' he thought to himself as he fell back onto his own chair once more.

Their meal arrived but a little while later and they devoured it with as many manners as they could, though so many delicious foods were tempting them. Sef was just about to begin eating when he suddenly halted, looking down at his plate with a sudden feeling rising up from inside of him.

It was the feeling he had gotten earlier when they had first left the airport, that something was wrong. Only this time it was a bit stronger, as though the ominous threat was coming closer. Though the hunger was still clawing at him like a starved animal, he set down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth pretentiously, waiting for the others to finish.

"Sef, you didn't eat hardly any of your food," Jackie noticed right away, but Sef sighed and sulked slightly, feeling depressed with whatever he could sense.

"I'm…just not very hungry." His stomach grumbling ravenously betrayed that he was lying.

"Are you sure?" Jackie said, baffled by how his body was aching for food yet he refused to eat it.

"I can have my chefs prepare you something else if you don't like this. Maybe they can cook you something from your own culture if you prefer it…" Li Rong offered, but Sef merely shook his head and sat back, only nibbling slightly at the array of foods before them and waiting for Jade to get done so they could move on to something more entertaining. The food he had sampled was indeed delicious and rich, but for some reason his appetite failed him at a most inopportune time.

Jade looked a bit worried as their gathering separated after the meal was over, Jin and Li Rong going off together for a walk while Jackie, Uncle and Tohru went off to look around the rest of the modern-day palace.

"What's with the sudden hunger strike? You don't know what you missed," Jade said with a smile, licking what remained on her lips and rubbing her full stomach with satisfaction. Listening to her talk about it now made him feel like a fool in part, but then his instincts were rarely wrong. The ominous feeling was beginning to fade from his body as they left, and he wondered if it truly had been a bit of whiplash for all the moving around they had been doing lately.

"I just…don't feel too good. Maybe it's just old injuries from our struggles coming back for revenge. All I know is the instant they brought in that food my stomach turned," Sef said, and Jade edged a bit away, noticing he looked rather pale and not wanting to be in his path should the little food he ate come back for revenge as well.

Suddenly Sef paused, and Jade did the same when she realized he was no longer alongside her. He was staring straight ahead with a relatively fearful expression, and she turned back to see what he was staring at.

The figure standing before them was enormous, a youthful man at least seven feet tall and long, fiery hair trailing down the traditional kimono all the servants wore. Besides his towering and oppressive appearance, however, was the hard, apathetic look in his eyes, as though they were silently piercing through their beings. Jade wasn't as susceptible to fear however, and simply stared at him with an uncaring gaze as she waited for something more worthwhile to happen.

"You children shouldn't travel alone by yourselves. Even in the confines of a welcoming home there is still danger," his booming, monstrously deep voice said, and Sef instinctively slipped backwards a few inches from surprise. Jade held her ground and continued to stare at this massive servant. He had seemed to have appeared from literally nowhere; they hadn't seen him during mealtime when all the rest of the household staff had taken their meals as well. His build caused him to take up nearly all the hallway, blocking their path.

"We're just fine thanks; if you don't mind we'd like to get back to our rooms," Jade said defiantly, and the servant continued to stare at them, not showing any initial signs of moving until two more presences made themselves known.

"Chen Long, I think you're frightening the children with that serious look on your face. You'll have to pardon him, he's one of the guards and takes everything so seriously," came Li Rong's voice suddenly, and Chen Long, upon her appearance as she and Jin approached, moved to the side with a respectful bow. But Sef couldn't help but notice the constant look of hesitance and sudden anger that came onto his face even as he obeyed.

"C'mon Sef, let's see what's on television and horde some of the snacks that Jackie brought alone," Jade said, gripping Sef's wrist and pulling him along as he seemed rooted to the ground. He watched as Li Rong and Jin continued out to the gardens, but Chen Long stood once they were gone and continued to watch after Jade and Sef, staring at them with such intensity he felt ill and worried all over again.

"I'm getting some really bad vibes from that guard, not just because of how he looks though…I think it's something worse than that…" Sef said, and Jade had to agree a bit with this.

"Yeah, I got this funny feeling in my stomach too when I saw him, but unlike you I didn't cower," Sef scowled under his breath at this as Jade continued, "But let's not talk about this anymore. I just want to relax a bit before worrying all over again."

"But what if this is serious? Haven't you noticed something dark about this house, about this city? I don't know what it is, but I have this bad feeling about this entire trip here and what's really going on," Sef said, and Jade scuffed as she let go of his hand to open the double doors into the chamber.

"I think you're just being paranoid is all Sef," Jade stated as they entered his bedroom, hoping to watch television together before Jackie shooed them off to bed. There were still sounds below on the first floor of servants scampering about, cleaning after their feast and preparing for the storm crawling ever closer. The curtains near the open windows wafted gently, crying out a whispered warning of violent weather to come. Even the air hung heavy with suspense, and the city lied bland and gray once more in the distance with the ornaments removed and tied down beforehand.

"I hope that storm doesn't kill the power," Sef muttered as he plopped onto his lavish bed, scanning the dark sheets for where he had tossed the remote control earlier. Jade sat on the edge of the mattress, removing her sandals before resting herself against the headboard and crimson pillows, crossing her arms behind her head in relaxation.

"Oh, is poor Sef afraid of the dark?" she mocked, continuing with her amusement at his 'premonitions.' He scowled back at her as he finally found the remote and slumped back beside her, purposely using the force of it to knock her off balance.

"You know, you're not helping to get rid of these weird feelings you know," he muttered, tired and hoping to get in some nice brain-draining TV-viewing before they went to bed. The darkness of evening followed alongside the thunderstorm, slowly lurking across the lands slowly but surely, like a supernatural force in disguise.

The sound of rapid Chinese was almost lulling to Sef, and several times he was tempted to not close his eyes only to be jerked awake when Jade elbowed him sharply in the ribs, annoyed he wasn't appreciative of her translating everything that was being said. Instead as he listened he found his eyes scanning the vicinity of the room, of which he hadn't had the opportunity before this time to absorb, and found it to be more beautiful and extravagant than he had noticed.

Everything looked precious and fragile, with sculptures depicting ancient scenes perched on a private fireplace to his left, the small space swept clean of ashes and soot. Divine figures carved of roseate marble and jade stood nearly everywhere, all of them turned away from his bedside so as not to startle him in the night it seemed. Nothing was more terrifying then awakening from a nightmare to see two lifeless eyes staring through the dark at you. His father's towering onyx figure of Anubis that dwelt just beyond his bedroom door had forced him to close it each night, or else find the relic staring at him through the shadows.

"This is getting good. Juro just admitted he's been having an affair with his fiancée's sister, and now she's pregnant _and _needs an organ transplant that only Kuri, his fiancée, has the right blood-type to donate one of her kidneys for," Jade murmured, and Sef revealed his excitement by dully blowing raven follicles of hair from his face.

"I couldn't stand them in English, Spanish, or even Arabic, so what makes you think that soap operas spoken in Chinese would appeal to me?" he whispered quietly, and Jade only shrugged and continued to watch.

"Now you're the one sounding all down on yourself Sef; tell me what's really bothering you. All this dark aura mumbo-jumbo isn't very convincing," Jade said, and Sef continued to lay with his eyes half-closed, as though in partial meditation while remnants of his mind were still open to thought.

"Don't question the relevance of what I can feel Jade; after all Wepwawet's presence gives me a sense of when harmful darkness is near. He controls a power that keeps demons and their energy in check, so his abilities should allow me to feel is this sort of energy is near. And that's just what I perceive it to be." Sef ran his fingers weakly over the creases in the bed sheet, attempting to wipe away the wrinkles so he could gaze upon a flawless sapphire surface and feel as though he were at seas. Perhaps this could act as a calming sensation so he would be able to fall asleep more easily.

Jade sighed and brushed some of her own unruly hair away. "Maybe that is true, but what could possibly be here that's got you so worried? I mean Li Rong's wedding is coming up, Jin-Shing seems like the perfect guy for a girl like her, and the whole city is about to commence a celebration over the whole thing. Yet you're acting like they're about to hold a public sacrifice. I just don't get it."

"Sometimes evil hides itself better than anything; I'm sure you've heard of the saying 'A blessing in disguise?'" Well it works the opposite way as well; darkness is the shadow of light, and sometimes when it seems so bright we forget that there is still some absence of it, somewhere, perhaps spreading and growing."

"Well aren't we a little ray of sunshine tonight. You told me before we left that a good night's sleep would dispel my bad feelings, so maybe it'll do the same thing for you. All I can say is that while I might not have the powers of a god within me, I've still developed a good sense of when something's wrong, and I can't feel anything out-of-whack right now," Jade said, but by the end of her statement Sef was long since asleep, his hands folded in what appeared to be prayer and his head hanging slightly from where he was laying against the pillows and ornate dolls on the bed. Jade at first wanted to scowl but found Sef's slumbering being too peaceful to disturb.

Quietly she shut off the television, planning on watching the remainder of the show in her own room, carefully tucked Sef in and left the room, shutting off the lights overhead and making sure the windows were closed tight.

_Sef wasn't sure where he was. _

_It wasn't a place he had been before, Cairo, San Francisco, nor the brimstone depths of the Underworld. No, it was someplace in the mortal world, consumed by the most ravenous darkness he had ever seen._

_It was night, like the night he had seen approaching just before sleep had claimed him, but it was potent, and the air was heavy and hard to breathe in. The clouds hanging overhead were motionless and showed no sign of moving; a dank and musty rain fell from them, salty like a culmination of tears. There was a feeling of hatred in the air, like someone nearby waiting for the right moment to kill you in silence. Only Sef could see it was the darkness in it of itself wishing to do so. To him._

_So he ran; it was instinctive, the outcry of the body to run away, to flee whatever is coming, whatever is watching and following, but no matter where he went it was always there, and the city went on forever, stretching out further and further every time it seemed he was reaching its outskirts._

_The streets were dank; no banners or ornaments of the celebration at hands were to be found. Windows were closed shut, curtains drawn, doors locked shut. Not a crack or flaw was left open for him to try to press himself through to escape; he had been shut out and no one would allow him in. For some reason he knew this, knew that he was alone and no salvation would be found. His heartbeat was pounding so harshly in his ears he feared he would die from the stress at any moment; his consuming fear was painful and caused anguish all throughout his being._

_He cried first for Jade, then his father, then Jackie and Uncle and Tohru. Then the Enforcers. Not one of them answered, only echoes made their way back to him as he screamed with his remaining strength, feeling his body beginning to give in and fall apart under the wake of an unseen evil._

_'I told Jade…she didn't believe me…why didn't I listen to myself? Why is this happening to me?' his thoughts were like shouts in an enclosed area, so vividly ricocheting that they caused the searing back in his forehead to increase, and he was forced to his knees._

_He felt his body convulsing within and dying without, his skin becoming clammy and stiff with approaching death. It was the most horrific sensation he had ever felt, but he couldn't fight it off, and instead succumbed to it. Though he didn't resist with his thoughts any longer, the pains till continued to dig into his flesh, and his vision was becoming blurry and faint as he fell to whatever was devouring him._

_Then a voice, cold, amused at his coming demise. "I knew you would be stubborn, that you wouldn't surrender yourself without trying to escape. Poor child, did you really think you could flee? This darkness is more than any mortal can handle; it comes from the very sins and vice of humanity, but you were thrust away from the protection against it. You are unwanted; you might as well shut your eyes and give in."_

_Sef could barely whisper at this point, but he tried to anyways. "Why…why are you telling me this? Did…did you…do this to me?"_

_There was only silence that followed, with the sounds of the pelting rain coming down against the pavement and his lifeless form, and then there was but one word._

_He recognized it as Japanese. "Hai."_

_And then all was dark._


	31. Tales of Ancient Evil

**Author's Note:** Thought the last few chapters were long? Wait until you try getting through this monster of a chapter...I've got so much going on this week I wanted to get all this stuff written and done, and so thus my chapter's about ten thousand words long...literally. ; Sorry if this is extreme but I can't help but writea lot (and there may be quite a few spelling errors, I can only find them to an extent...) Yes, Sef does do a lot of bowing though that's a Japanese tradition, but then he is confused and learning about different cultures sothat kinda explains it. Thanks so much for all your comments, they've really helped me keep this fanfic going. And now for the thirty-first installment of Kurayami! Happy Valentine's Day!

The morning light had long since arisen, and dawn was blooming over the horizon as the roseate light turned golden across the horizon and all creatures awoke. Outside, the gardens were bustling with weary life, the menagerie that Li Rong owned streaming with life as the animals scampered across their cages. Inside, the mansion itself was only beginning to fill with sounds of frantic servants preparing meals and baths for those who requested them.

It had been a challenge, but Li Rong had managed to get both Sef and Jade out of bed and into a warm bath where they fussed from wanting to go back to sleep, and the lulling heat made this sensation stronger. She scrubbed their hair and skin clean of the grime they had managed to accumulate the previous night rummaging through their rooms, tending to them as though they were her own children.

"It's a shame you don't grow your hair out Jade, it would look so beautiful pulled back into braid. When I was young I wished I had hair like this, but mine was always a mess and went every which way," Li Rong sighed in remembrance as she combed the younger girl's hair, attempting to get a certain pair of still-lazy children ready for breakfast. "Why don't you come over here Sef and I'll do _your_ hair up into a braid?"

"Braids are for girls, and I get called that enough as it is."

"A typical eleven-year-old boy reply. Here in China it's perfectly acceptable for boys and men to wear their long hair in braids, and I would think it a shame to leave it untended to as you always seem to," Li Rong said, and Sef had to admit his hair was looking particularly ratty this morning, probably from tossing and turning all night long. But he didn't approach and instead continued tearing at it with a cheap brush he had brought along, ending up with about half his scalp upon it with the violence of his strokes. His own memories had betrayed him and brought this savage behavior.

The afterimages of his nightmare were still burned against his mind, that awful sensation taking him over, feeling death and strange, barbaric emotions coursing through him. It was unlike anything he had experienced before, including their recent struggles, and still little compared these mere visions of slumber.

"I wish you two had told me you were hungry before raiding the kitchens; my chef prepared us a large breakfast that might go to waste," Li Rong said as she moved on to Sef's tangled locks, noticing the chocolate ice cream smears on their pajamas, but they both smiled innocent with darkened teeth.

"It was Sef's idea to go down and get something; it was because he was too picky to eat anything last night," Jade instinctively placed all the blame on her companion, and Sef looked at her with an early-morning lividness that _might_ have been able to scare a smaller child.

"Well you said we should take all the chocolate ice cream; thank the gods we didn't hold hands or we'd be stuck together now," he said sarcastically, rubbing his still soiled handsdown with a warm, wet cloth that Li Rong had given them both when she saw the mess they'd made. Even soaking in the baths hadn't managed to remove all traces of the predawn snack.

Afteranother half an hour or so of cleaning and grooming,both of them were wearing embroidered Chinese kimonos, smelling of herbal ointments she'd blessed them both with and ready to go downstairs for breakfast.

"I see you live rather traditionally; my father and I attempted to, but with Western culture forcing it's way into the Middle East it's becoming harder and harder to do so," Sef commented, and Li Rong smiled faintly as she led them along.

"Well, I wasn't as traditional before, but Jin is very strict in keeping this culture preserved," Li Rong replied.

"By the way, where did you meet Jin? He seems like a really nice guy," Jade asked, but Li Rong's faint smile seemed to fade a bit more.

"Well, actually this is an arranged marriage. Up until a few days ago I had never met him before; since then he's been busy making this place feel like home and running his business. But he's still a very good man and I've come to care about him even in the short time we've gotten to know one another," Li Rong said, and both of them nearly fell over with this notion. She seemed baffled by their abrupt reaction to their plans. "I'm surprised _you're_ not more familiar with this custom Sef; after all the men in your culture tend to literally give away their daughters to the wealthiest suitor while they're still only adolescents."

"Yeah, but…it's just so weird, you don't think things like that go outside your own culture," Sef said, picking himself back up and following along once more.

"What business does he own?" Jade now asked, hoping to keep the conversation going.

"He owns a business called Nengdray that cultivates herbs and other medicinal plants; he's always fiddling with new combinations and researching. He's very dedicated; in fact he's helped some of the people of the city find cures for different ailments that antibiotics can only do so much for," she said with a proud grin, and both of them felt happy for her.

"Hey Sef, why don't _you_ use your powers to cure people and perform miracles?" Jade muttered behind the young woman's back. Ever since Wepwawet's abilities had been revealed she had been imagining up a vision of Sef dressed in a holy man's clothes, bringing the dead to life and all the other divine actions that she had read gods and deities were supposed to be able to do. This odd vision, however, was cut short when Sef finally answered after a moment of considering this himself.

"Er…mine, or rather Wepwawet's, abilitieskind of work spur-of-the-moment; you've seen it before. Only when I'm in grave need of them or in terrible danger does Wepwawet allow them to channel through me," Sef replied, and Jade scowled a bit, disappointed it seemed.

"Do you think Wepwawet would consider it urgent enough that I want my hair outta this bun? Li Rong tied it so tight I can't get it out," she murmured as they entered the dining area once again, tugging at the ribbon restraining her hair.

Everyone else was already there awaiting them, sitting patiently at the dining table as the smells of breakfast made their way through the chamber. Tohru and Uncle were at it again, blessing the meal before it was evenpresented while Jackie shook his head in slight embarrassment for his uncle's constant suspicions. Jade's mouth watered with the fragrance of cooking spices as Sef still felt slightlydisoriented after his nightmare the previous night.

"Are you all right Sef? You're still looking rather pale this morning; perhaps we should call the doctor and make sure you didn't manage to contract something. There are some epidemics going around right now," Li Rong said as she placed her hand instinctively onto his forehead, noticing the lack of Sef's once lively spirit, but the boy shook his head with a faint smile, waving off her worries.

"I'm sure he's just adjusting to the climate change dear; after all he isn't native here and it has been rather humid lately," Jin shrugged it off, helping to serve everyone at the table with a nice helping of seasoned breads and an array of different dishes.

Sef once again felt his stomach lurch at the sight of the food but knew he would starve to death if he didn't eat anything, so against his better instincts he tore into the food regardless of his shaking hands and watched the others delve into theirs as well. The food tasted fine, delicious in fact to him from having never tried such delicacies before, but the ominous feeling refused to go away regardless of the rich flavors and feeling of fullness returning. He didn't stop until his stomach threatened to bulge from his tight-fitting clothes, the silk threatening to give way under his momentary gluttony. He stopped and wiped his mouth, realizing the others were beginning to finish up as well.

"Glad to see you're nottrying to starve yourself to death anymore," Jade muttered, offering him some spiced vegetables that she despised. He suddenly felt a bit ill from indulging himself so much and waved his hand no, shoving his plate away slightly in signal that he was complete.

"I couldn't eat another bite; it was delicious Li Rong," Sef mumbled a bit tiredly towards the young woman, who seemed thrilled to know he thought so, "I'm sorry for my rude manners yesterday in not enjoying dinner; I wasn't feeling too well."

"If you feel any worse later on don't hesitate to tell me; my physician makes house calls and can make sure you haven't come down with anything serious," Li Rong said with her usual concerned demeanor, and Jin laughed softly into the plain sake he had been enjoying as a drink.

"You've been fussing over everything ever since we announced our plans to get married," he said with a weary smile, picking up her hand from the table and placing a affectionate kiss against it.

"I just want to make sure that everything is perfect and that everyone is happy," she said with a slight blush, and Jin sighed cheerfully and picked a bit more at his meal as everyone else was at this point. The servants were clustered together by this time in corners like ladybugs, enjoying their own meals and savoring the gossip more. Sef admired the unity of the household, even within the realm of the staff. They all seemed to be so happy about working on Li Rong's estate.

"I know you're excited, but let's not forget what needs to be taken care of beforehand. We must await the blissful calm that follows in the wake of a plague," he said with a suddenly serious tone, and Jade and Sef could sense something was amiss with the radical change in his mood. The young man looked up and sighed, noticing that they appeared confused.

"But it seemed like you had just about everything ready; when we got here all the decorations were up and there are caterers to take care of everything else," Jade questioned, setting down her chopsticks and taking notice of the sudden change in the weather. The rain hadn't stopped from the previous night, though the feverish lightning and thunder had halted around midnight. A low rumble signaled its return.

"It has nothing to do with the wedding itself in truth, something is to happen on the night before our marriage which is what I speak of…" Jin proceeded to mutter something in Chinese under his breath, his voice low and sounding suddenly afraid.

There was a tense and uneasy silence in the air that followed Jin's statement. Sef could feel the hair on the back of his neck stand on end, and noticed as well a change in the tint of light overhead. It seemed to falter slightly with the change of atmosphere, the abandoning of the excitement of the upcoming wedding and the mentioning of something dreadful. They continued flickering as someone got up the nerve to speak.

"Uh…um…what exactly does that word mean?" Sef finally asked nervously, though at the same instant knowing he probably didn't want to know. Jin looked towards him directly and began to explain, though everyone else appeared to be listening just as intently as him.

"Roughly translated it means 'The Darkening' in Chinese. It takes place once a year on the same day, or rather night, as…oh, it's an American holiday from what I can recall…er…Halloween, that's it. Which is today from what I can recall; I've been so busy lately it's hard to keep track of time. You see, centuries ago there was a horrific battle that took place in this region between humans and hordes of demons that had escaped from the Underworld. Both sides of this war lost many to the struggle, but it ended in both sides retreating and leaving the dead unburied to slowly be worn away by the elements, unblessed and uncared for. It is on this chosen night tonight that the Darkening always takes place, a shame considering that it is the night before our wedding tomorrow evening," Jin-Shing said towards Li Rong, who sighed with the same, gloomy feeling as well sweeping over her.

"And…what exactly is this 'Darkening' you're talking about?" Sef asked, though in all honesty by this point he _really _didn't want to know.

"Well, it's said on that night that the darkness, the absolute hatred that fueled that terrible battle all those centuries ago, arises from the remains of those who died, consuming any who are unprotected by the appropriate blessings and dwell outside of the light," Jin-Shing continued as though he were doing some storytelling, though there was nothing magical about the tale.

"C-consumed?" Sef was now officially frightened out of his mind. His small hands shook enough to knock his delicate china plate back and forth, quivering in between his fingers.

"Yes; when they are exposed to this darkness they are possessed by a hunger for death and suffering, and die but a short time later from the madness and mental stress upon their minds. It's said to be the most horrible death that can be suffered, and once they have died the darkness drags the poor being's soul into the Underworld when it recedes back to the hell it was born of, thus transforming them into a horrible demonic being like themselves," Jin finished with a dramatic tone.

"Jin! You're frightening the poor things. It's really a bunch of rubbish, nothing to be frightened of. An old wives' tale if you ask me; every year we bless this entire manor and not once have I walked into town the next day to see anyone who's been 'taken' by this unholy force," Li Rong said, though she didn't sound all too convincing. Her voice was trembling slightly and her own shaking hands betrayed her fibs.

"That's because no one is foolish enough to journey after the twilight has passed, when the Darkening begins, and it goes on until the first light of dawn chases it away and anyone caught in its midst," Jin was sounding sarcastic now, like it was some sort of cruel joke, but Sef was shivering from head to toe with this story.

"Uncle does sense something dwelling beneath the city, stirring and waiting to strike," Uncle said between sipping his soup, though seeming unafraid due to his mastery of chi magic.

"Uncle, stop frightening them! Sef already looks like he's going to die of a heart attack," Jackie lectured maturely, though he too could almost feel as though something were shifting in the earth below, like watching a dragon stir the waters before lunging at its prey. Jade was quiet, but not as pale or uttered terrified as the young boy looked right now.

But with these comments made before them, Sef and Jade instantly cast over themselves a brave bravado and excused themselves at the same moment, both attempting to keep from shaking with the sudden fear that had been sparked from within them. Before any of the adults could halt them they were walking down the corridors aimlessly, shoved against one another in 'repressed' terror. Neither would admit openly that they were afraid, but their expressions and unblinking eyes gave this off wordlessly.

"You…you don't think that he was being serious right? I mean there can't be such a thing as what he described...right?" Jade asked, but Sef's teeth were clattering too hard for him to answer immediately.

"I…I don't know. After what we've seen, the awakening of the dead, or rather the _hatred_ and _evil_ of the dead, is pretty plausible when you think about it. I mean, it does seem a bit absurd when you take into account the coincidence that we're here just in time for it, but then we always seem to walk blindfolded into any and all trouble," Sef said, and Jade nodded in agreement, startled a bit by a shifting shadow and grasping Sef's awaiting hand as she leapt back. Both of them blushed but clenched the other's hand so tightly with fear that neither actually let go. There wasn't anything romantic about it this gesture, however, with the fact that it was cutting off the circulation to their hands with the intensity of their inward fears. The moving darkness that had caused Jade to jump had simply been caused by one of the countless housecats Li Rong owned, a beautiful silver one that hissed at their approach and took off before they attempted to take futile chase.

"You know, maybe this whole 'Darkening' thing is what's been bothering me lately. I've been sensing some weird things around this city, not to mention that horrible nightmare I had last night…" he said, shuddering as Jade cocked an eyebrow.

"I did hear you tossing and turning all night; you even fell headlong off your bed at one point and the noise of it managed to wake me up. I had to lug your unconscious butt back up onto it as you muttered in your sleep and then started snoring right in my face. _Please _brush your teeth next time before you go to bed," Jade took a second to wave her hand in front of her face to give effect to her statement. "You know, come to think of it, you didn't sound too much like yourself when you were talking in your sleep. In fact, you even uttered something in _Japanese_, which struck me as odd but I was too tired then to care," Jade said with a yawn, and the notion of this didn't make Sef feel any better.

"There was someone in my dream, it was a male…I think from what I heard, and he said something in Japanese at the very end before the nightmare ended. But in the dream I was caught outside, and I had this horrible feeling of death and suffering coming over me. It was so horrible…" Sef said, shuddering yet again as Jade forced them both to a screeching halt.

"What is that horrible smell?" Jade suddenly yelped, lifting up her sleeved arm to her nose and mouth as Sef caught wind of the stench as well. It was putrid and thick, and smelt an awful lot like something burning.

With their breathing sparse and filtered they journeyed towards the origin of the horrible odor, finally coming upon adoor slightly ajarthat opened to flickering candlelight. Now the awful smell was mixed with the strong scent of incense burning, making it even more unbearable considering the contrasting reeks in the air. Both of them had to hold off on coughing from disgust and peered in through the allowing crack, looking into the chamber with wide-eyed gazes.

The room was dim and cluttered, far smaller than the extravagant guest rooms they had been given upon arrival. It was obviously a servant's chamber with its close confines and musty, withdrawn appearance here in the bowels of the mansion. The room itself seemed neglected, cheap, self-applied wallpaper chipping and tearing away on its own, coiled into ironic ribbons of decay. Stacks of books and papers took up the majority of the floor space, towering up to the ceiling like ancient towers still trying to grasp the sky. There was a layer of dust upon everything, untouched save some disapproving fingerprints smeared across the once solid surface, condemning the filth. A canopy bed sat to the left, untouched and seeming unused by the occupant of this chamber. Even he seemed to becarrying a layer of dust as he sat at the battered desk, his back turned to the eavesdropping children.

They recognized him immediately; how could they forget that looming servant they had managed to run into the night before, seeming tohave beenawaiting them in the shadows with those fiery eyes? Even with his back turned to them his features were still as prominent as ever; his tall and built stature bent over the edge of the desk as he scribbled down on a parchment scroll with an old-fashioned quill, the scratching of it eerily musical as both Jade and Sef clasped their hands over the other's mouth to keep quiet. The smell in the air had not faded, and they were now able to see where it was coming from.

There was but one section of the room where the books and seemingly endless sandpaper writings had been moved aside, the faded carpet had been torn away to reveal the floorboards beneath. It was here that a small laboratory seemed to have been assembled from what was at hand, wooden trays arranged in systematic lines and holding upon them vials of odd-colored serums and syrupy fluids, thick and some bubbling even without the presence of heat. They appeared to be ordered by potency, for at the front of the polished tray stood three identical vials of the same emerald venom, all of them looking acidic enough to burn through careless flesh. Sef gulped and Jade gently kicked his leg in warning.

The smell itself that had aroused their curiosity, however, was not from these out-of-place potions but something lying on the floorboards themselves; after a moment they realized in horror that it was the carcass of some sort of animal, a hog from what they could see from between the rows of books and miscellaneous objects. It was lying on its side, almost unidentifiable due to the fact that it had been burnt, its flesh scorched black and any blood from the slaughter dried or evaporated. The reek came of its rot, and the corpse still simmered slightly.

"He performed a sacrifice," Sef muttered, but Jade had summed this up herself by this time. The carcass was lying in some form of retardant fluid that had kept the entire room from being caught on fire, and there loomed a sense of purposed death that made them both incredibly frightened.

Jade continued to gaze at the potions, every now and then looking up to make sure that Chen Long hadn't noticed them there. He seemed so absorbed in his work that even when Sef coughed gently from the stench he didn't turn and continued writing feverishly. Something about the vials of strange fluids bothered her to no end, until finally she discovered what they might signify.

But she kept these suspicions to herself as they watched Chen Long suddenly make his first movements, standing from the chair as though far older and frailer than he appeared and stomping over to his potions, the floorboards shaking and squealing a bit with his oppressive weight. Though the room revealed he seemed to never be at rest, he didn't appear even slightly tired, more aged if anything with the look in his eyes. They were still as searing as ever, like looking into a unhindered blaze. He picked up two vials of different solutions and began mixing them with a precision that made them feel far more conscious of the danger they may be in. But one screech from the floorboards beneath their own small feet and the servant would be force-feeding them the bubbling concoctions. Sef gently tapped Jade's shoulder in signal that it was time to depart, and she nodded, the both of them creeping away in synch with one another.

They waited until they had turned a handful of labyrinthine corners before they relaxed and conversed, though they still kept their voices low and subdued.

"Sef…I think that maybe the reason you've been feeling sick and paranoid is because he's poisoning your food with whatever's in those vials," Jade finally managed to reveal what she had contrived from seeing those foul brews, but Sef appeared strangely skeptical of her claim.

"But why only me? I mean I'm hardly a threat to someone without the knowledge of Wepwawet's presence, and there isn't any way _he _could know of this," Sef said, and Jade had to admit that was a bit of a flaw in her theory. After all, Chen Long was of Chinese descent and had never been to America before it seemed, so how could he have possibly discovered the secret of Sef's amulet?

"But then what were all those vials for? And the burnt sacrifice...and all those books and papers? Either the guy is attempting to invent some fanatical religion or he's meddling with some heavy-duty black magic," Jade said worriedly, and Sef nodded in agreement to this.

"I won't rule out what you said about poisoning my meals, but until we find out more we'll assume that Chen Long is just experimenting with some rather unpleasant sorcery and not get involved," Sef couldn't believe he was saying this, considering that at times he was just as mischievous as Jade. "I know we've both become accustomed to investigating every strange thing that happens around us, but I'm not too interested in getting mixed up with a guy that set a pig on fire in his bedchamber. For now we'll keep our mouths shut and if the time comes we'll inform Li Rong of what we saw. Maybe this is pretty mainstream here, or part of some ancient ritual that's still accepted here, but I don't feel like knowing at this time."

"But what if we wait and he takes his aggression to the next step. Let's say he _is_ poisoning you Sef, making you ill for some reason. You know what the next step is after harm Sef. What if he decides he needs a sacrifice the next time that's _human_?" her voice was quivering with the thought, and memories of sacrificial temples flashed across the young boy's mind that he and the excavation crew had stumbled upon before. Walls of ceremonial scripture splashed with old, yet visible blood from the horrific crimes carried out. The Egyptians had never been ones to take any shortcuts when it came to satisfying the will of the gods.

"Well what can we do? Jackie and the others will write off what we saw as being over-exaggerated more than likely, and besides if word gets around and Chen Long discovers we were spying on him, then we'll only spark his anger even more so," Sef murmured back behind a shielding hand. "I think that we should just pretend for now we didn't see anything and keep it between ourselves. I promise that if we notice something else out of the ordinary that I'll be the first to tell someone. Until then let's try a new strategy and lie low, keep silent and go on a hunger strike to be careful. We'll survive off those food stuffs that Jackie brought along and if we must we can still snatch some stuff out of the kitchens."

Jade sighed and nodded; it did seem to be their wisest course of action. In the past their enemies had taken bold actions against them that had left with no other choice but to act immediately; in this situation, however, it did appear best if they just feigned ignorance to the dark chi beginning to arise from Chen Long's spellwork.

But even when they arrived to Jade's bedroom and sat apprehensively upon a spanning divan, their conversation continued to linger upon the threat that was enveloping the palace.

"Who would have thought this dusty old amulet would be such a curse upon me? I respect Wepwawet and pity him for having been forced into such imprisonment, but his presence keeps bringing out enemies. I think it's only a matter of time before a demon comes upon me while I sleep and quietly takes my life…" Sef said morbidly as Jade felt tempted to drown out his quiet tone with the blaring sound of the television. The way he spoke sometimes you would think that they were still trapped in the gruesome Underworld, surrounded by demons and theundead. Maybe to him, even here in the mortal world it still felt like this.

"You gotta cheer yourself up a bit Sef or else this entire trip is going to be an unpleasant experience for you and take its toll on your health. Maybe we should ask Uncle and Tohru to perform a chi spell over you to rid you of any poison in the event that I'm right," Jade suggested, but he shook his head and continued looking down upon himself, as though he were collapsing from within.

"I don't have the strength to even move at this point; with what we've just seen, the nightmare I had, and the general feeling of this coming 'Darkening' that Jin spoke of, my entire experience has already long since been ruined. It isn't your fault or anyone else's but my own I suppose. My amulet is usually what brings these terrible things about," he said, slumping back against the cold marble wall and closing his eyes in slight rest, hoping that sleep would be the cure if he could only sustain a short nap.

But their peace was interrupted a moment later when the door suddenly began to open gently, a faint shriek alerting them to the approaching visitor, and they half expected it to be Chen Long coming to carry out everything they feared. They were greatly relieved, however, to see Li Rong standing in the threshold, looking completely different from earlier with the worried gaze on her face. Her bubbly happiness was definitely what suited her, and the lush makeup she wore across her features was in disarray from the frown she wore.

"I hope what Jin told you earlier hasn't frightened you into submission children; the Darkening is indeed something to be wary of but it cannot harm you so long as you take the necessary precautions, as we have every year with its coming," Li Rong said, stepping into the room and approaching them as this new topic revived their subtle interested in the subject.

"Precautions?" Sef asked as he rested his chin onto a pillow he pulled against himself, and Li Rong nodded as she took a seat between the two of them, placing a comforting arm around each of their shoulders. Obviously she was assuming their outward fear to be of the annual darkness that consumed the land, when in reality the darkness within this very household was more their concern. They did, however, wish to learn more about it and how it could be rendered ineffective in harming them.

"We have many ways of protecting ourselves against the Darkening. Rituals and spell are performed at every entranceway into the mansion, even the windows. They are shut properly and the cracks between the surfaces sealed with a special holy ointment the darkness cannot penetrate. Everyone has a swift ceremony performed upon themselves as well to make sure that the evil forces cannot reach nor influence your minds. There is absolutely nothing to fear so long as you follow what we instruct you to do; during the Darkening you are both welcome to stay in the living with room where we usually gather, though the entire household should be safe enough for you to roam. We keep all the lights on as another way to ward away shadows that may indeed get in," she explained, and they both listened in curious awe to these practiced concealments.

It was a bit relieving, but Sef still couldn't get the imagery of his nightmare out of his mind. "But what if we become trapped outside? What if the Darkening swallows our soul and drags it into the Underworld aga-" he paused himself before he revealed too much, and Li Rong didn't seem to take any notice of the untold adventure he and Jade had had but a few days ago.

"You won't get left out there, I promise. We make sure that everyone is safe and inside before we lock everything up and make the proper blessings. It is during this time that the community truly comes together you see; the homeless are always taken into homes and shelters so they are protected from the effects of the Darkening, and livestock at protected as well from succumbing to madness during the rebirth of such evils. There is no expense spared to keep everyoneand every creature safe, so put aside any fears of being harmed by the events of this night," she said with a comforting grin, smoothly out his rebellious hair with her hand as he relaxed against her slightly.

"Have…have you ever had anyone's soul be taken by the Darkening before?" Jade said, and with this Li Rong's expression winced away once more and darkened itself.

"There is a tale that's been passed down as a warning for those who dare to even consider venturing out after twilight when the lands are laid to waste and the rivers turn to venom. I honestly don't want to tell you this; it might frighten you worse than you already are now," she cut off, but the both of them were so absorbed by the mysterious feel of this coming night that their unblinking eyes told her to continue. "It happened quite some time ago if this story is indeed true, back all the way to when the Darkening was a newborn plague upon this massive gravesite. During this time it was commonplace for the lords to own slaves and force tremulous labor upon them, and amongst them was a young slave who had been captured from a foreign land, kidnapped and brought here after a war had ravaged his village. He was sold to a cruel and oppressive lord who beat him and the other slaves he owned, carrying not if they starved or suffered great pains. Finally this slave had had enough, and he became so angered that he ignited a rebellion amongst the other slaves and led a resistance against the lord, who responded by calling to arms his militia to defeat them. They were punished severely, but none so much as the leading slave, the young man who had incited this violent uprising. The lord sentenced him to the most gruesome fate he could contrive, and considering the opportunity was upon them, he carried out a horrible fate for the poor slave. Just before the Darkening settled in after twilight, the slave was cast from the manor and could seek no shelter in time. It was said his pain was great, and that the other slaves could hear his futile cries from within the dungeons of the castle until he finally succumbed and died.

Morning came and the Darkening ended, and the lord brought the slaves outside and showed them the body as they mourned the death of their leader. They said his eyes were half opened, and tears were streamed down his cheeks from the unholy desires that enslaved his mind just before death, but the worse of it was the physical damage done to him. For you see children, that is what truly destroys you when the Darkening comes: the absolute madness that consumes your mind. His arms were covered with gashes as he tore at himself, suffering the cruel bloodlust of the demons and the everlasting hatred devouring his heart. The lord used his poor remains as a reminder to the slaves to never rebel again, and they never did, for they could barely even bring themselves to look upon what had happened to their friend and comrade, and he has been used as a constant example as to what becomes of you if you are foolish enough to wander out after dark on this coming night."

The silence was thick enough to cut with a knife, and neither Sef nor Jade could find anything meaningful to say after hearing such a sorrowful account. Finally Sef spoke, his voice laced with sadness after hearing her speak of this.

"How could that young lord be so cruel…how could he do something so horrible to someone just to prove a point?" Sef asked, and Li Rong sighed and continued with her tale a bit further.

"That young lord was known for being terribly cruel, a foreigner who used dark magic to twist the minds and hearts of people until he was finally banished to the Underworld himself. But it still did not ease the heartache of the other slaves who had had to listen to their friend die, and live forever with the guilt of having been able to live while he suffered so," Li Rong said, and Sef felt as though his stomach had not only turned but had fallen completely out of him. These constant reminders of the darkness within the world were becoming drastic enemies against his appetite.

"So much death…is this city known for nothing more?" Sef asked softly, and Li Rong rubbed her hand gently up and down his spine to try and halt his shaking.

"In all truth it is known for being a place of great tragedy, but it is my home regardless of this and I can only hope and pray that it becomes a place of life and of light with the right influence and blessing. Perhaps someday the Darkening will be halted by a kind magician who can lay all those battered souls to rest at last, but until that day comes we are forced to press forward and prepare for the effects it may have," Li Rong said, and she stood and departed without another word, feeling horribly guilty for having recalled that tale once more for those poor children, who now seemed terrified to death of what was to happen this night.

"It's hard to believe isn't it?" Jade suddenly asked, turning to her young friend.

"What is?"

"That people can be so cruel as to want people to suffer so much before they die, and to wish it so they never do truly die, but instead lose their soul. That poor slave's soul was dragged into the Underworld and molded into a demon all because he wanted the freedom he deserved. And here we are sometimes thinking that our lives are so unfair when in reality…we're so lucky to just be alive," Jade said sadly, and she knew Sef felt exactly the same way as he reached down onto the floor and retrieved a fallen blanket that they had knocked from the divan.

The storm had returned outside, battering against the windows as though it were trying to infiltrate the palace through any means necessary, and streaks of almost constant lightning carved scars against the shrouded sky overhead. Wedging themselves in between the velvet pillows and elegant dressings and huddling together under the handcrafted quilt, Sef and Jade watched the storm rage outside within each other's arms, seeking solace with one another as nightly weariness finally caught up with the both of them. Sef had pulled the thick quilt over them as the cold chill of the storm managed to fight its way into the house.

"Do you think such evil will come upon us someday Jade? Will Wepwawet's powers drive me to madness, or the talismans or other artifacts consume your mind?" Sef asked before he closed his eyes in welcomed bleakness.

"All we can hope is that that never happens, especially not tonight…" Jade murmured as she too fell asleep, resting her head on his shoulder as slumber now claimed them both.

Jackie would check in on them every few minutes, tucking them in when one would kick the blankets away, but they still held close to one another as the storm continued. Finally Jackie simply stayed in the room with them, watching the television from the edge of Jade's bed and sighing whenever a particularly large crack of thunder threatened to break their innocent slumber.

He was soon joined by Tohru and Uncle, who were beginning to seal the doors and windows with the necessary spells and objects for the coming night. Of course this meant that once again Tohru was forced to carry almost everything but the spell book around, but he didn't seem to mind, and even Uncle smiled briefly at the sight of Sef and Jade huddled up on the couch together. Sef mumbled something incoherently in his sleep and Jade answered almost immediately, as if they were dreaming the same visions together.

"Those two make quite a pair don't they? It's nice to know Jade has someone like herself to confide with," Jackie said, hunting for the remote as Uncle and Tohru closed the shutters, murmuring incantations as did so and muttering agreements to his statement.

"It's a shame to see them go through so many struggles though; Daolon Wong nearly managed to kill them both and there wasn't anything we could do. He was too powerful to stop with the amulet, and their souls were almost trapped forever…I'm amazed at how fast they're managing to get on with life. I know it must be hard for them to carry on knowing what they do."

"Sef and Jade are being forced to grow up so quickly, but Uncle believes they can keep themselves safe on their own. They have obtained a level of independence that most people cannot discover even as adults. They are not fearless, but they know they must risk in order to gain or triumph," Uncle added as they finished the final window in the room, and they moved on to the next room without exchanging any more words. Jackie continued to watch after them, flipping through the channels until the pictures faded into static and he fell asleep as well on the edge of the bed, his head hung as he continued to sit somewhat upright. He snored lightly as the Chinese soap opera continued through its lulling melodramatic atmosphere.

He didn't awaken as a figure entered the room briefly and looked over them, standing there in the threshold with a stern gaze. He watched everything carefully, taking in the room before his eyes transfixed on the children momentarily. His breaths were heavy as though he had been laboring with something strenuous, and the starch smock tied around his servant uniform was stained with chemicals and remedies he had accidentally spilt while experimenting and performing the needed blending. He smelt of burnt flesh and his face was covered in smeared ashes that he hadn't washed away yet.

His fists clenched and unclenched several times, as though he were weighing something within his mind, and finally he turned and began to exit the room abruptly, his pounding footsteps mimicking the thunder outside.

And Chen Long vanished into the shadows once more.

-

Meanwhile…back in San Francisco…

Miscommunications were a thing that the military was highly infamous for, and Section 13 was no exception to this debilitating flaw as well. Though Uncle had indeed spoken to Augustus before they had departed for China, the memo to assign one of his guardsmen the duty of looking over the curio shop had gotten buried under an increasingly large stack of paperwork. Thus the curio shop sat unattended to, unlocked and vulnerable.

"Hello? Is anyone in here?" Finn said as he poked his head through the space between the open door and the threshold, looking around through the shadows since the lights had been turned off. "We were just stopping by…is anyone here?"

The Enforcers could still remember all the times they had spent inside the small shop, creeping in and hoping desperately that Uncle didn't come rushing out of the kitchen wielding a broom as he had been known to do. God knows why they feared this so much, considering Ratso or Hak Foo could simply swipe the cleaning utensil in half if they wished to.

"I wonder where they all are..." Fin said, scratching his head as he noticed the lack of life within the confines of the shop.

"It looks like they packed up and went somewhere, but why didn't they leave anyone to take care of the shop? Any burglar could just come into here and take whatever they wanted," Chow said disapproving, and for a brief moment the four of them felt rather tempted to do just that, but then they remembered the friendship they had forged with Sef and Jadethey withheld the urge to do so. Ratso suddenly spotted a note hanging over the threshold over the kitchen and hobbled over to read it, switching on the overhead lights and looking at the yellowish sheet of scrap paper with a dumbfounded gaze.

"Hey guys, come here and look at this," he said, and the other three came to his sides and began reading the hastily scribbled text as Ratso tore it from the wall, taking a small bit of the goldenrod paint with it.

"It's a list of stuff to do...1) Make sure the artifacts and books are kept in order, 2) Clean out the stove and chimney in the back of the shop..." Finn looked down to see Uncle's signature scratched down at the bottom of the paper. "I wonder if he left this list...for us."

"The Old One did not request this of us," Hak Foo pointed out, but then what was the explanation for it? Finn scratched his head as he overturned the idea of playing shopkeeper for the Chan's until they came back from their trip.

"It's not like there's much else for us to do anyways; let's clean this place up and have it spotless by the time they get back. Maybe the old man will pay us if we do a good job," Finn pointed out at the end, the single statement that managed to gain the interest of his team, and they set off to work to do what the sheet had designated of them.

Finn took what he believed to be the easiest job and went over to organize the miscellaneous artifacts and books that Uncle kept in his cluttered shop, but didn't realize just how the many the elderly man had managed to possess over the years. The piles of random junk and relics went on forever it seemed, packed against the corners from floor to ceiling, and he had no idea where to begin. So he set to work rummaging through individual boxes, examining various things as he pulled them out and blew the dust from them.

Meanwhile Chow had been assigned the fun-filled task of cleaning the gruesome old chimney that jutted up from the back of the shop, filthy from years of sitting unused and neglected. There was so much dust on it that Chow nearly coughed himself to death before he wedged the sweeping broom up the chimney, releasing the small flue within it and immediately being rained upon by ashes and soot. How all his skin matched the back leather he favored, and he scowled briefly at Finn before returning to the work he had been given.

Finn attempted to sort things first by color, then size, then composition, but always ended up starting over when Hak Foo lumbered by and knocked them over, moving boxes out of storage to be aired out. Now the entire shop was a looming cloud of ancient dust and smelt of mothballs. Finn was nearly covered in cobwebs that had fallen from the decaying cardboard boxes and needed to halt every few seconds to fix his hair.

"Think you could be a little more careful? You're ruining my threads," Finn mumbled as the massive warrior passed, and Hak Foo's glare was enough to make him silent.

"Mighty Warrior cares little for Grooming Monkey," Hak Foo said in retaliation as he walked off once more.

"Who you calling a monkey?" Finn shouted defensively, but the warrior simply entered back into the closet to fetch more belongings. Finn fumed for a minute before taking out his anger with a kick at one of the items. He didn't realized how absent-minded this was until the piece of property was flying across the room and suddenly shattered against the wall.

If this had been a normal curio shop, any one but this one, then it would have meant paying for said item and picking up some harmless porcelain from the floor. But as Finn watched in surprise, something very strange began to happen as a result of his anger.

Adark, serpentine dust that had fallen from the flask suddenly whirled into a cyclone without the aid of wind, and he was left to shield his eyes as he stumbled away from the sight.

"Oh great, I think I just woke something up…" he muttered, and when the dust and grime finally cleared and settled once more, he reopened his eyes and looked forward once more.

"Well it seems someone finally released my ashes and revived me," came a voice, low and humored. "If only not by the hands of stinking mortals in this shamble of a temple."

Finn's jaw threatened to drop to the floor. There standing before him was what appeared to be a demon of some sort, though the adolescent had a look of elegance about him. He stood about as tall as Finn himself, covered in a glistening array of scales but a distinct human look about him. His eyes were red, and his hair was black and draw back into a neat queue. He only wore a simple pair of dirtied pants, and his hands and feet were marred by sharp claws and scars.

"Uh Finn? You should have told us you were having company over; Chan's Uncle isn't going to like this…" Chow mumbled as their uninvited guest smirked towards them.

"You seem baffled; I am Ching, once the local god of a Chinese village long ago, ruler over greed and mischief, but when I perished a sorcerer locked away my remains so I could notregenerate myself, and now you have freed me from my imprisonment!" He clapped his hands together and caused a quaking noise to travel through the room, shattering several objects with the rising decibels.

"Uh, here's the thing. We kinda have to put you back cause if Chan's uncle finds out you got loose we'll be in serious trouble…"

"Oh my friend, you already are…"

Ching suddenly rose his hands into the air and snapped his fingers in a playful manner, but suddenly a divine energy produced itself and flung in different directions, some towards the startled Enforcers who stumbled and tripped over one another attempting to get out of firing range. The all ducked quickly behind the ratty couch, all gathered together and peering over the edge of the faded fabric to see what was happening.

"No need to cower poor mortals, soon enough misfortune and misery shall be your ends!" Ching said, suddenly wrenching the entire bookshelf from the walls and thrusting it into the air, dumping the books into a disorganized pile on the floor. Ching retrieved but one book from the ungodly mess as the Enforcers all groaned.

"That's gonna be one helluva mess to clean up…" Finn muttered unhappily under his breath.

Ching didn't need his hands to hold the book; a slender and serpentine tail revealed itself and held the book level with his waist as he scanned through the spells.

"Well, whomever this Uncle is you spoke of, he sure knew what to research for dark spells. There are some real beauties in here that will make this city as maddening as a menagerie without cages. You see there are many other minor gods such as I trapped within various artifacts and trinkets; just break them all out and my comrades and I will have this city in our grasp!" he hissed with a conniving grin. Finn turned to his teammates, who were all at a loss as to what they could do.

"There's gotta be something else around here that can trap him; can any of you recall something that that old geyser used to trap evil spirits or voodoo or whatever in?" Finn said, and they took a moment to think as Ching carried on with speaking his plans. Finally something sparked within Chow's mind, and he turned back to their self-proclaimed leader.

"I remember this oldvase thingy that Chan's uncle keeps around to collect bad spirits that might get into the house. Maybe if we can juice it up we can trap that teenage tyrantin it," Chow suggested, and it was the best plan that any of them could think up at this time. Quickly dividing up what each of them was to do, they set to work as quickly as possible as Ching continued muttering to himself.

Hak Foo took the offensive and lunged himself at Ching, but the deity seemed unafraid as he grinned and simply stepped to the side. Hak Foo completely missed and smashed straight into a neatly kept shelf of delicate glass figures, which rained upon him as he struggled back onto his feet once more.

"Too slow, but I think I can get something for you that will speed you up," Ching said, snapping his fingers once more and summoning several wisps of garmented ribbons that been amongst the items. They wrapped themselves tightly around Hak Foo's arms and waist, and before he could hope to react with something more than a gulp, the ribbons unraveled themselves swiftly and he was sent spiraling across the room like a virtual tornado.

Thankfully this was enough time of diversion for Chow to sneak over to the window display where the sacred flask was positioned, snatching it as Ratso and Finn dug through the pile of dismembered books for one that might help. They both seized an armful of them and ran back behind the couch at the same moment as Chow, and they all winced as Hak Foo slammed against the shop door and fell backwards in disorientation.

"Pretty Stars dance around Mighty Warrior's head…" Hak Foo said dizzily as he lied there with a dumb smile on his face.

"Hmmm, where did your three smaller cohorts go? Hiding behind the furniture again?" Ching mocked as he approached, and they searched hastily through the pages of the spell books, looking for something, anything that could get them out of this mess.

"C'mon, c'mon! There has to be something that can make this work!" Finn said, and suddenly he reached a page labeled 'Empowerment Enchantments.' Scanning the faded words upon the parchment paper, he finally found a translated spell that seemed to fit their general needs. "It says this spell will give additional power to whatever magical item it is spoken towards. Quick, give me the flask thingy!"

Chow handed over the glistening blue container and Finn quickly set to work. Ching was rapidly approaching, grinning as he lifted his hands to reveal them.

"I shall end this quickly; my patience wanes and I am craving the chaos that me and my brethren shall cause once I am done eliminating this trinket shop," Ching hissed, but by this time Finn was already halfway through the spell.

"Frong hai frong hai saiming tai!"the Irishmanshouted, and suddenly the flask glimmered a from a radiant energy similar to the one that Ching himself used, and after being nearly blinded for a few seconds, Finn leapt up from behind the couch and pointed the open surface towards Ching, who grimaced and was suddenly being pulled into its gaping opening.

"You…you tricked me! I would commend such behavior if it were not my abrupt downfall!" Ching shouted as he was pulled into the void, and Finn immediately seized the cork that had come with it and pushed it on, hoping it would hold.

"Good as trapped again," Finn said, but he seemed to have spoke too soon when the flask nearly broke, taking a small leap from his hand as Ching moved around violently within it.

Luckily Chow caught it, but it was a challenge holding onto it. It flung itself in many different directions and dragged him halfway across the room as he dug the heels of his black leather boots into the carpet, tearing some clean slices across its surface.

"Get something to put this in! My fingers are starting to slip!" Chow shouted, and now there was another hunt around the house for something to contain the container in. During this time, Chow was dragged up and down the spiral staircase once, through the pile of books and over Hak Foo's half-conscious body about half a dozen times. And all the while he continued hitting things over, messing up every bedroom up on the second floor until the floors were all but unseen.

Finally the three of them wrestled the fidgeting flask into a shoebox and taped it shut with duct tape, then finishing the lovely cage with an old sign that said 'Beware of Dog' with two arrows switching the 'g' and the 'd.'

"There, taken care of," Finn sighed, but now that Ching was restrained there was still the matter of the shop. It was entirely destroyed, many if not all the artifacts broken or piled, books scattered everywhere, the bedrooms a wreck thanks to Chow being thrust around them. Not to mention the cracked floorboards from Hak Foo's fall, the cuts in the carpet from Chow's boots, and a shoebox that was currently vibrating on the floor with an angry demeanor about it.

"This is bad," Finn summed it up as eloquently as usual, when suddenly there was a pounding at the door. The three of them looked over to see a dozen Section 13 agents standing outside on the sidewalk, the cleaning materials they had brought along with them scattered on the ground and their stun guns drawn. They all put up their arms automatically, when suddenly Finn smelt something burning and turned to Ratso with a condemning expression.

"Uh big guy? I don't remember asking you to cook, just to clean the stove out…" he said with a scowl, and the Enforcer suddenly looked nervous.

"Uh…well I switched the stove on to 'Clean,' but then when we were searching for something to put the flask thingy in I kinda threw a bunch a dish towels up onto it…" his explanation was made clear a moment later when the kitchen was suddenly ablaze with fiery light as the dish towels rested aflame on the burners.

Finn turned back as the agents rushed into the shop and surveyed the damage. "Chow, the next time I suggest we do anything charitable, please smack me."

Chow slapped him upside the head before they were cuffed.

"I said _next time_ you idiot!"


End file.
